


Isn't It Our Responsibility To Do The Right Thing?

by natigail



Series: You Can Determine The Future Of Our World universe [3]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Childhood Trauma, Established Relationship, F/M, Gen, Magic, Monsters, Mute Frisk (Undertale), Nonbinary Frisk (Undertale), Other, Post-Undertale Pacifist Route, Prejudice Against Monsters (Undertale), Reader Is Not Frisk (Undertale), Reader-Insert, Sans (Undertale) Remembers Resets, Shortcuts, Undertale Skin
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-05
Updated: 2020-08-26
Packaged: 2021-03-06 04:26:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 34,795
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25727392
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/natigail/pseuds/natigail
Summary: * Set five years of the events of You Can Determine The Future Of Our World * (I recommend reading that first!)There has been established a tentative peace between the monsters and the humans since the treaty and New New Home has grown and adapted to allow a more diverse population. In the ten years since monsters emerged from the Underground, they have had more than their share of ups and downs with humanity. Even so, everything now seemed to indicate that they were in a good timeline. That is until Sans starts acting weird and secretive and shuts everyone out, even his trusted partner.Something is up and it’s not good news. It’s never good news if it concerns the void. Or rather, who might come out of it.
Relationships: Sans (Undertale)/Reader
Series: You Can Determine The Future Of Our World universe [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/984942
Comments: 34
Kudos: 33





	1. A Remarkable Anniversary

**Author's Note:**

> Did anyone think that I'd be back to add a sequel to this? I wasn't sure I would but I find myself thrilled to be back in the universe. This follow-up won't be as long as the first work but it will explore characters that never fit into the first work, but I still found myself endlessly fascinated with. I hope some of my old readers discover this fic. If so, welcome back!

It had been ten years since monsters emerged from the Underground. Ten years ago, to the day, you had tumbled out of bed at the group home and found everyone huddled around the TV in the living room as you’d come down the stairs. Footage of monsters being led by a child in a striped shirt was showing on the screen and you knew in that moment that the world would be changed forever. Now, at 26 years old, you stood next to that child who had become an adult and the two of you checked the last details for the decorations and confirmed that the tech was in working order for the broadcast that would commence in less than an hour.

A lot had happened in the ten years since monsters had emerged from the Underground. The first year had seemed to pass in a haze with people being unsure what to make of these new additions to the world and the knowledge that magic was a real thing. Then a bombing at a meeting about citizenship had happened and the humans had waged war on the monsters. You’d been young and fascinated and scared but still chosen to try and study these creatures to prepare yourself for the world that would come.

You’d never counted on being kidnapped by the monsters because your path had accidentally crossed with the child that had broken them out of their prison. You had counted less even on being shown just how prejudiced your views on monster had been. Upon realizing this, you had committed to right the wrongs inflicted on the monsters and their friends and try to get the rest of the human population to understand that the monsters had never wanted a war. Somehow, through struggle and hardship, it had worked and two months after a very passionate and moving display at a peace rally, the war had officially been ended with signatures and pawprints on a document.

It had not been smooth sailing since then, but public opinion had gradually gotten better and better and you felt confident that you were moving more and more towards a reality where there could be true harmony between the species. Right now, New New Home looked amazing decked out to the nines and people were already arriving. The city had grown and expanding to thrice the size that it had been when you’d moved here five years ago. Many humans had come to live here and it was one of the most diverse and bustling cities in the world, even if it was still relatively small.

Now flowers and banners and flags adorned every storefront down the main street and a big scene had been constructed for today’s speeches. There was a light breeze in the air, but the weather was pleasant and behaving and it helped to ease your nerves a little. Not everyone had thought that this would be a good idea. Any pro-monster celebration seemed to gather at least a small amount of monster haters but thankfully, you had the best security in the world, if you did say so yourself. The Royal Guard had been reinstated to its former glory with your friends Undyne and Papyrus in the lead. Only their main objective now wasn’t to capture humans but rather to keep humans from doing anything stupid, like attacking monsters.

“How do you like it, Frisk?” you asked them, after just double-checking that all the wires to the camera was properly plugged in. Mettaton had already had his team look over them but you wanted to make sure nothing could go wrong. Sometimes, Mettaton had made small alterations that meant that a camera could suddenly switch to just follow him around. As if that robot didn’t get enough airtime lately. He was everywhere on human TV and he was clearly loving every moment. He had a whole army of fans, ready to tune into and hear anything he said.

Frisk straightened up and turned to look out over the open road that would soon be filled with people. A small smile painted their face and their eyes crinkled with happiness. You knew that Frisk had worked more tirelessly than perhaps anyone else. They were a monster ambassador once again and they had taken their role very seriously. It was often easy to forget that they were so very young because they had always seemed wise beyond their years.

Frisk signed to you, hands moving with rapid fluency, but you caught it all. You had made it your mission to be able to understand sign language to be able to properly communicate with them. After five years, you were pleased to say that you could pretty much always understand what Frisk meant without having to rely on Sans to translate.

They were saying that it felt weird but good to be here and that they hoped everything would go off without a hitch. They just wanted it to be a day of celebration and happiness.

“Me too, kid,” you replied and reached out to ruffle their fluffy hair. They tried to duck away but you caught them and resumed the ruffling. Frisk made movements of protest, halfheartedly, and you let go with an amused grin.

They turned to you and signed that they weren’t a child anymore.

You flashed a grin at them. “I know,” you said overbearingly and reached out to adjust their striped shirt anyway. Frisk had insisted to wear a striped shirt, one with a pattern that was identical to the one that they had worn on the day that they had emerged from the Underground. 

"FRISK! DOE! STOP MESSING AROUND! YOU ARE DISTRACTING ME FROM VERY IMPORTANT ROYAL GUARD BUSINESS!” Papyrus complained as he ran over to the two of you. He was in his tactical uniform and he was, in his own words, ‘scoping out the area’. 

The two of you laughed and promised to keep the messing around to a minimum. Frisk’s grin said that they didn’t intend to keep that promise at all.

The nickname that you’d first gotten when you’d come here and not dared to reveal your real name had stuck. Every monster called you Doe, despite everyone knowing your full real name by now. In fact, you almost felt as if too many people knew your real name, even if you were more worried about the humans rather than the monsters.

You’d seen your name plastered across a lot of headlines through the last five years. It would die down at times, but be back again before long. You had never meant to but you’d become an important part of the monsters’ fight for civil rights and you had been in the room when the deal had finally been signed three years ago. Monsters had been recognized as beings that were worthy of human rights all over the world. It had been tough going and despite the early promises, it had been a fight that lasted two whole years before monsters were given all the rights they should have been granted at in the first place.

A crackle sounded in your ear piece and a familiar voice came through.

“Doe, Mettaton wants to know if you’re sure his segment can only last t-twenty minutes,” Alphys’ voice said in your ear. 

You chuckled to yourself. He was already getting longer speech time than any of the other impressive people on the list. It was a hearty mix of speeches from important monsters and humans but it also featured entertainment, such as a mixed band that would perform and a monster comedian. Mettaton had been allowed twenty minutes to do whatever he wanted, whether that be stage a play or sing a song or do a speech. You had a feeling that he’d try to do everything. It was bound to be hilarious.

“It’s already been decided, Alphys,” you replied. “He’ll just have to be quick or cut some of his segments.”

“C-can you not tell him that?” she asked, sounding so nervous. She has always been quite afraid of conflict. At least, you took great pleasure in knowing that she was not afraid of you anymore. She had been terrified when she first met you but through the years, she had started to warm fully up to you and she now said that she considered you one of her best friends.

“Patch him through then,” you said. 

“Thank you! You’re the best,” Alphys replied.

“Hello? Is this the wonderful, smart and beautiful miss Doe?” Mettaton’s voice rang out within your ear.

“Flattery will get you nowhere, my dear friend,” you replied.

“On the contrary, I think you will find that it gets me almost everywhere,” Mettaton said and even if you couldn’t see him, you were sure he was winking. His voice was familiar and easy to read, plus you knew his flair for dramatics.

“It’s not getting you more speech time. You will make do with your twenty minutes, Mettaton,” you replied into the ear piece.

“But-”

“Bye, darling,” you said and shut off the device. 

Frisk was watching you with a smile of their own and signed that they were proud you were able to stand your ground now. You’d learned your lesson over the years. If you gave Mettaton an inch, he’d take a mile.

Frisk sat down at the edge of the stage, swinging their legs while looking over the open road. You knew they’d be able to hear the rustle and bustle of people nearby, just waiting for the roadblock to be removed so they could come in here. Some people had even slept through the night in the queue to be able to make it to the front of the stage.

Monsters had been very novelty in the beginning and people had tentatively allowed themselves to become fascinated and interested in the species again after the war had ended and it had turned out that most human media had said about the monsters had been horrible incorrect propaganda.

You took a seat next to them. Frisk let out a sigh and turned halfway towards you to be able to sign.

They signed that they could hardly believe how much had changed in ten years. Things were looking better now than ever before, and they were just so hopeful. They knew that a lot still had to be said and done but to know people were so willing to celebrate the day that monsters came back to live besides humans made their heart feel warm.

Their hands shook a little as they signed, a tell that they were emotional because usually their hands would be able to move without any hesitation or tremble at all. This was Frisk’s whole life. Over the last ten years, they had done nothing but try to help the monsters. Nearly half their life had been dedicated to this cause.

You didn’t hesitate before you leaned over to wrap them up in a tight hug. They had been forced to grow up so fast and you admired their strength and their wisdom, but they were still just a young adult. You were still just a young adult too, although a slightly older one, and you felt like you didn’t know what you were doing most of the time. Frisk never allowed themselves that insecurity. They just continued, determined as ever.

“It’s a good day today,” you said, and hugged Frisk a little tighter. “We’ve come so far. Frisk, you’ve done amazing.”

Frisk couldn’t sign when you had your arms wrapped around them but they tapped your arm twice and you knew they meant to tell you had done an amazing job too.

“Hey LOSERS!” Undyne called out affectionately. “Stop hugging on stage and get out of there. We’re about to let people in and we don’t want you to get mugged! Our little human celebrities.”

You got up, slowly and walked into Grillby’s, which was located just behind the stage. Your crew had been allowed to use it as a bit of a safe station, and it definitely had something to do with Grillby’s generous offer of providing free food. Monsters and humans alike loved free food. New New Home had hired more and more humans to help run and coordinate everything related to the PR of the monster race but a lot of the team also consisted of monsters. You were particularly happy to see Napstablook with their headphones on, probably checking some of the audio that would be employed during the speeches. You also couldn’t help but notice Hannah and Madelyn huddled together in a corner, talking in hushed voices. They had been your allies for a very long time and you could not be more thankful that they still stuck by the monsters.

Frisk made it over to Toriel in her wheelchair and threw themselves into her lap like they were still a kid. Granted, they were shorter than the average adult human but that still meant that they had fairly long limbs. Toriel didn’t seem to mind though and hugged her child tightly.

You watched the wheelchair, now an updated version curtesy of Alphys that could levitate among many other things but it still hurt your heart a little that she would never fully get out of it. After waking for her coma five years ago, she had slowly but surely been regaining magic but an incident a few years ago had nearly drained her of all of it. Now no one was sure she would get her powers back fully again.

Surprisingly, the only person you couldn’t see from your team was your partner. You had expected Sans to be lingering by the bar, throwing back hot sauce because it gave him more of a kick than ketchup and you knew he hadn’t been sleeping well. It wasn’t uncommon for him to have occasional stretches of insomnia but it had been dragging on longer than usual. It had been over a month now but you’d contributed it to the upcoming anniversary, so you hadn’t pushed him on it. He never liked being pushed very well but it still left you feeling unsettled to see him so up in arms. Sans loved to sleep, when it was peaceful and free of dreams, but the fear of nightmares often kept him from properly indulging.

You strolled up to the bar and asked Grillby if he’d seen Sans. You felt a bang of worry when he just shook his head while his hands worked the glass to wipe it clean.

“You haven’t seen him today at all?” you elaborated.

Grillby shook his head again. You didn’t like the sound of that. You’d caught a glimpse of him in his private laboratory under the house this morning and he’d been surrounded by papers with equations. It wasn’t an unusual sight but he had said that he’d head over to Grillby’s in a second to help stuff get ready for the festivities. He knew how much this event mattered, and whether he liked it or not, and really he didn’t, he was one of the most recognizable monsters.

You tried to call his phone but it just went straight to voicemail.

Now really wasn’t the time to focus on Sans’ odd behavior. Not when you had human guest speakers arriving any minute and people had just been let into the main road. You could already hear the roar of people. But you couldn’t help but worry. That was the price when you loved someone; you worried about them when they were not there. You knew that you still had just enough time to walk out of the backdoor of Grillby’s and make it home to check if Sans had just gotten caught up in his research, accidentally gluing his bony butt to his desk chair again.

Some of the PR people you’d hired to help maintain the monsters’ image had tried to push for Sans to make a speech as well but he’d just winked and made a swift shortcut right out of the meeting. He was not one for public speeches but he had never not been there to back all of you up, in whatever capacity. Frankly, you were a little surprised not to see him here considering Papyrus was running around managing the masses of human attendees. He hadn’t been fond of the idea of Papyrus officially joining the Royal Guard, thinking it too dangerous, but with both his brother and you against him, he had eventually caved.

“I’m going to run out and just look for Sans,” you told Frisk and Toriel, as you passed them. Frisk frowned and Toriel looked concerned but both of them nodded. They both knew better than to stand between you and your skeleton boy.

However, you had not counted on the Royal Guard member standing in your way. He was human but one of Undyne’s highly trusted men since he had joined the group a couple of years ago. You knew Alexander quite well and you were not surprised that he’d been tasked with looking after the monsters and the speakers waiting in Grillby’s.

“I need to go out,” you told him, hands on your hips and a hard glare in your eyes.

“I have orders that you and all other speakers stay put until it’s your turn to go on,” he said, stoically. “They’re letting the humans into the ground any moment.”

“I’m aware of that but since I’m one of the last speakers, I think I’ll be fine. I promise to come back. I just have something I need to check first.”

“Miss, you know-” he tried to argue and really it was a testament to his patience that he still tried to do this, even after years of knowing you.

“You and I both know that I’m leaving, Alexander. I know Undyne gave your orders but I don’t take orders from Undyne and thus I don’t take orders from you,” you said resolutely, but then softened your voice. “I will be fine.”

“But you-” he tried to argue again but you moved past him and he didn’t stop you. You would have kicked his ass if he had tried and he knew that. He might be a trained bodyguard and built like a tank, but you were quick and not above using the dirty tricks you had learned while undergoing your fighting training.

On Sans’ request, backed up by every other monster in your friend group and Frisk, you’d started learning some basic material arts to help keep yourself safe if someone tried to overpower you. Undyne had been your primary teacher and she had been brutal but you knew how to defend yourself well by now. She still insisted on weekly training sessions to keep you in shape.

Fighting had turned out to be necessary a couple of times, when you’d nearly been crowded in when you’d visited other cities. No one would dare do that to you in New New Home because here everyone still kind of knew everyone but a lot of tourists had been flooded to the city in the last year in particular and right now, you probably had more people within city limits than ever before. You tended to completely forget that you had gotten a bit of celebrity status until someone came up and asked for a photo with you. It felt weird, even if it had been happening for a couple of years.

However, you also knew all of the back alleys of this town by now and making it back home to the house was not difficult despite the overrun of people everywhere. Truthfully, your heart swelled at seeing so many people coming out to celebrate the monsters escaping the Underground. It filled you with a sense of hope that you were on the right path.

Or rather, still in the right timeline.

Once you made it back to check the house, you quickly established that Sans was not in the living room, or your shared room, or even in his basement laboratory. You could feel the worry begin to grip you a little more because he didn’t normally just disappear but there had been something off about him for a while. The frustration that had flared at his absence curled and twisted into worry. As a last resort to seek out his hiding spots, you walked around the back of the house and you felt the physical wave of relief as seeing him lying on the little hilltop, looking up at the clouded sky.

Knowing he was safe and unharmed, you let yourself feel the annoyance that he made you worry. You sat down next to him before flopping over his stomach, making him huff out a breath of air. He always did that even if he didn't have lungs for you to knock the air out of.

“hi, my love,” he said. “enjoying rattling my bones as usual, i see."

He sounded fairly normal, with a light humorous tone to carry his words but you felt how they came out flatter than usual. You tilted your head from where you’d thrown it against his ribcage and looked up at him.

His eyes looked tired. His white pinpricks were still visible but they were slightly faded and they most certainly didn’t expand and glimmer like they used to whenever he saw you after you’d been apart for a while. Early in the relationship, he would look at you like that if you’d just been gone for half an hour.

The bone under his eyes seemed slightly sunken in and a duller white than the rest of his skull. You knew he had not been sleeping well but he was looking like he could barely get _any_ sleep. It had been a while since you’d paused to inspect him so closely. The last week had been hectic with all the preparations for today and Sans had holed himself up in his lab most of the day. You had let him, knowing he was probably working on his next scientific project. You had hoped that he was just wrapped up in work but now you were wondering if it was more than that.

Sans noticed you staring, categorizing the discrepancies and his smile to you came out a little forced. He hated when you turned analytical on him but right now, you didn’t feel like you had any other choice. He was too busy brushing you off at every turn whenever you did ask if everything was alright. Sans was a good liar when he wanted to be but eventually, his mask would crack. You’d always see past it in the end.

You usually didn’t have to because you’d promised each other to be open and honest.

“What is going on with you?” you asked and reached up to trace his cheekbone.

He leaned into the touch, like he always did, and his forced grin turned softer and more genuine.

“just catching some ‘rays. it’s a beautiful day. birds are singing, flowers are blooming..."

“Are you skipping out on the celebration?” you asked.

“nah,” he said and shrugged. “i know how hard you and the others worked on it. but i still have a little time, don’t i?”

Technically, he didn’t because everyone was supposed to be either on the ground or at Grillby’s by now. You had told him that as late as yesterday but you had a feeling that he hadn’t been paying proper attention when you'd spoken. It turned out you had been right.

“It’s starting soon,” you said instead of scolding him for not paying attention. “I got worried when I couldn’t find you.”

“oh,” Sans said and flinched a little. “i didn’t mean to worry you. sorry.”

You wanted to tell him that you were always worried about him. More so right now than you had been in a while. You felt like he was slipping away from you and he wasn’t grabbing hold of your hand whenever you tried to reach it out.

Sometimes, Sans needed his space. He had been through a lot in his lifetime. And his other lifetimes. You knew that it got too much at times. Nightmares were an indication of that but he had told you that they hadn’t been as present after you had started to sleep in his bed because he would feel your soul next to his as he drifted off and he knew he was right where he was supposed to be.

Lately, you had a feeling that he just faked sleep and snuck out the moment that you had drifted off. Some days, you went to bed first and you had a feeling he never came to bed at all.

“Want to go together?” you asked him, burying your nose in his hoodie. It was a relic but last year, you had taken it to a repair shop and gotten it a couple of batches to help it last longer. Sans had been pleasantly surprised and you sometimes found him running his hands over the new stitching with a faraway glance in his eyes.

“nah, i’ll pop in later, if you don’t mind.”

You did mind but you weren’t about to make him go now if he didn’t want to. Still, you couldn’t shake the worry gnawing at you and you had a feeling that he was probably able to pick it up from your soul but he didn’t say anything.

The two of you were just quietly and expertly reading each other but no one said anything. The silence felt heavy.

“You know you can talk to me, right? Sans, I’m right here. You don’t have to be alone in whatever you’re dealing with.”

Sans’ grimaced and it wasn’t pretty. “i’m fine. it’s okay, doe. nothing i can’t handle.”

You felt like he was lying and it was both scaring and annoying you. You wanted to push him for answers but right now was not the time. In the back of your head, you wondered if there was ever a right time for a conversation he didn’t want to have. Probably not.

“I’ll see you there then,” you said and got up after giving him one more squeeze.

“i’ll see you.”

You didn’t see Sans, even as the other speakers and performers took to the stage. You even found yourself looking for him, in the group of monsters or amongst your crew but he was nowhere to be seen. You worried but you were too focused on having everything run smoothly to run after him again. You tried to ignore the hurt flaring in your chest.

Frisk opened the event with Hannah acting as their interpreter yet again. She’d been permanently hired by the monster counsel to aid Frisk in speeches. Mont had tried to apply for the position but everyone had agreed it was probably better that it was a human interpreter. Frisk spoke so eloquently about how much had changed and how happy they were to be able to stand in front of the crowd today and see so many people celebrate along with the monsters.

Harmony was still not achieved but they had hopes that it would just be around the corner.

So many people cheered and a couple of people that had seemed to want to cause a ruckus were quietly dealt with by Undyne and Papyrus.

The whole thing was live streamed and you tried your best to gauge the reactions online too. It was more important than ever to take those reactions into account too. It was a livestream that had essentially been the first steppingstone in stopping the war and you and the team had used it several times over the following years.

A couple noteworthy human politicians had been invited to speak as well and it was nice to hear that more and better regulations were constantly being worked on to improve the relations between the species.

The band and the comedian were a hit too and brought an air of fun and celebration to the otherwise serious talks at times. Every speaker had been told to keep their points at least somewhat light and approachable because this was a day of celebration, even if there was still more work to be done.

Mettaton’s segment was a hit and he somehow managed to stage a mini play, sing a song he had just written for the event as well as say a few heartfelt words to all his fans around the world, humans as well as monsters. You were sure he had at least gained a few thousand new fans from that extra performance.

You had been helping to run stuff behind the scenes, so you were a little disoriented when it was suddenly time for you to go out on the stage. You ended up out there without your prepared speech in hand but you figured it would be okay. You had more practice in holding speeches from the last few years than you every would have thought.

The crowd was intimidating and you knew your face was also cast on the big screens behind you to help the people standing far away to see you. Your voice carried far and wide the moment you grabbed the microphone and said hello and introduced yourself.

“I can’t even explain how happy I am to see all of you. I know it has been said again and again throughout today but it’s really incredible. About five years ago, I was standing on a stage not entirely unlike this one. I was arguing against a group that was once called POCAM,” you opened. A lot of people boo’ed at the name. The group had been disbanded five years ago after they had been ready to slaughter humans and monsters on live TV. “I don’t have to argue with you because you get it. You are here in support and I know that everyone in this crowd just want to achieve that harmony and peaceful co-existence that seemed like a long-shot five years ago. It doesn’t feel so much like a pipe dream right now, looking at you and hearing our guest speakers, monsters and humans alike. It makes me hopeful and I am so happy to be able with all of you here today. This is all of our fight and I’m so happy to see humans all over the world fund and join organizations fighting for monster cohabitation. We see you and the work you do matters. I hope that the children born now will grow up in a world where monsters are seen as friends, not enemies. I have so much hope in all of you. Let’s keep going and stay determined!”

A roar erupted from the crowd and you felt a little teary-eyed at seeing all the supportive banners and hear the chants in agreement with your words. You had gotten better at holding speeches over the years, a staple part of your job on the monster council. Your soul felt warm and present in your chest, almost burning with pride at the sight before you. Other rallies had been good but this was next level and it was on your home turf.

“It has been ten trying years since monsters emerged but I like the look of things right now, cheers to a brighter and clearer future!” you yelled, knowing you probably looked a little silly with the corners of your eyes being wet and a wide grin on your face. “New New Home has flourished in the past few years and nothing has made me happier than being able to see how bright and lovely the future can be with our two species living side by side. The university founded here in the city is responsible for scientific breakthroughs because monsters and human researchers work together and the mixed student population is going so well. I invite anyone interested in monster science to apply next term. And the school that opened last year for humans with magic have also been doing so well. It is another thing we have to thank to monsters for. They understand magic like we never did and the few humans born with magic now get to feel a sense of belonging and learn to use their powers safely instead of it being mislabeled as mental disorders. If any young humans are listening out there, if you think you have magic, you are always more than welcome to stop by and we will run a test for you. If you have magic, the monster teachers here would love nothing more than to help you understand it. Together!”

Another round of cheers. You knew those two institutions meant a lot to people. Professor Goodwin had recruited some of more open-minded his colleagues from your old university when they had founded a new university right in New New Home. It was the only place in the world that monsters could attend and that monsters could teach. Alphys ran a couple of courses and Sans accepted to do guest lectures now and again. You hoped it was just the first of many as the monster population would continue to grow and build alongside humanity.

The school for magic children had been Frisk’s idea initially. After the war, occasional letters would arrive in New New Home addressed to Frisk, mostly from parents or young children asking what it meant to be a human with magic. It had turned out that now that people knew magic was a thing, more children were suddenly presenting with the abilities. They were mostly between ten and fifteen years and all of them seemed a little worried. A lot of their “symptoms” would usually have been registered as various mental illnesses but the monsters had been able to identify which ones were actually magical. It had only natural to invite them to New New Home to be able to learn how to deal with their magic. It turned out that not everyone was able to use it as intuitively as Frisk.

“This day is a historic one,” you continued. “It is my dream that this will be a day looked back on, a day where humans and monsters lived in perfect harmony for the first time. A day where we celebrated together that we have gotten to know each other. I could rant off the scientific breakthroughs from the university regarding magic and souls or praise how monster food is helping combat both obesity and chronic illnesses or tell you about all the lovely stories of people realizing that someone’s heart – their soul - is more important than their appearance. Instead, I will just say that this makes me really happy and I cannot even express the joy seeing so many happy faces staring back at me. I will continue to repeat it because the joy it brings me is truly unparalleled. Thank you for all your efforts. Thank you for taking the time to listen and understand. Thank you for being here today to celebrate the day we got to meet monsters for the first time. Congratulations on 10 years!”

You raised your fist and the crowd roared even louder than before. You choked a bit on your sniffle but you were smiling so much that your face ached. Frisk came running up on the stage, throwing themselves around your torso in a bruising hold and you just laughed at the warmth you felt form their affections as you put their hand on top of their hair and squeezed them right back.

The two of you had become some of the most recognizable human faces in the monster liberation movement and you knew that this image of you hugging would be smashed across magazines and web articles around the world. Some would like it, call it sweet that the two of you got a moment of happiness to celebrate your efforts and others would probably call it cheesy or staged. You didn’t care about the latter. Unfortunately, you had learned that people always would hate.

Frisk and Hannah finished off the event with a closing speech that made you cry. Frisk didn’t even say that much, or rather sign that much, but you could just read their happiness on their face and feel their determination oozing out of them.

At times, it felt like everything went wrong and horrible things still happened around the world but it just made you grab onto this moment with both hands and hold on as tightly as you could.

“Stop crying, softie,” Undyne said and her nudge against your shoulder almost made you topple over.

Thankfully, Papyrus was standing on the other side of you, so you didn’t fall to the ground with what had probably meant to be a gentle shove. Undyne still underestimated her strength.

“IT IS OKAY TO CRY!” he protested and you could hear that he was a little teared up as well.

“Nerds,” Undyne commented but then sniffled and grimaced in a way that she always did when she tried to keep tears at bay.

You tried to look around but you couldn’t see Sans even now. Your heart sank a little, though the crowd erupted in loud applause and the band from before made their way back to the stage for an encore. The speeches and performances were generally over now but it was planned to be a city celebration that could continue into a party.

Small stalls, mostly managed by monsters, lined the other streets, and a lot of the shops were staying open late. Grillby’s had been cleaned and ready for the influx of tourists wanting to check it out now that it didn’t need to be your headquarters anymore. People started to dispense and some even tried to approach your group but some of the human Royal Guards stepped in the way, blocking anyone from getting near you.

Of course, Frisk couldn’t care less about that. They rarely took care of their own safety as they just almost jumped into the pile of admirers. Mont was not far behind, trying to keep tabs on their date mate, but that just made the people go even more over the top. Everyone seemed to agree that Frisk and Mont were a very adorable couple.

A lot of people were calling your name too and you got swept into doing photos and shaking hands and hearing countless thank you’s as well. Papyrus and Undyne were technically supposed to be on the guard duty but they were celebrities in their own right and as such they were quickly pulled into the photo sessions as well.

It turned into an impromptu meet and greet, which was a little bizarre, but everyone was so nice and it turned out a lot of people wanted photos with you and your friends. You felt slightly awkward when people asked for hugs but instead directed them to Frisk who had never had an issue hugging anyone, even strangers. You knew that kid would probably have tried to hug a flower if they could.

It lasted nearly two hours before the crowd finally thinned and your head was swimming. You tried to retreat to Grillby’s only to find it full to the bursting point but you walked around the back, punching in the code he had given you, and found yourself in the bustling kitchen instead.

By virtue of dating Sans for so long, you had made quite good friends with Grillby as well and the moment he saw you, he directed you to his office and told you that he’d bring your favorite burger to you as soon as they would be able to make it. He also put an energy bottle into your hand that you knew had a smidgen of monster food in it, so it would help you recover from the social fatigue quicker.

You thanked him and snuck away to his office.

It was cozy, with bookcases covering every wall and all filled to the brim and the soft sofa and the big wooden desk that was neatly organized. You had not counted on Toriel being sat in the corner in her wheelchair quietly reading a book.

“Oh, hey Tori,” you said with a smile.

She looked up and smiled widely as she recognized your voice.

“Have you finally managed to slip away from all of your admirers?” she asked with a giggle.

“Just barely. Frisk, Undyne and Papyrus are still out there, taking selfies and talking to everyone. They’re naturals at it. They just exude happiness right now and it’s contagious. But it’s been a long week,” you confessed.

As you said that, you let yourself fall onto Grillby’s sofa, face mushed against the soft cushion until you could manage to pull yourself up into a sitting position. You opened the bottle in your hand and took a long drag. It felt fresh and nice on your tongue, a little crackle left by the magic properties.

“Did you ever find Sans?” Toriel asked.

You frowned, thinking back to how Sans had been so dismissive and secretive when you’d talked to him behind the house. He had also promised to show up and you had not seen him. If he had been here, he had stayed way out of the way.

“I found him, I thought he’d show up but I guess he didn’t want to in the end,” you said and tried not to feel hurt.

“Is everything okay with you two?” Toriel asked, carefully.

You mulled it over and took another drink of the bottle. You wanted to say yes because it felt like the right answer. The two of you had always been close ever since you had gotten together. Your arguments and struggles had never been anything serious, even when you disagreed with each other. You had been through so much together before even getting together and you were usually there to support the other. That bond had only gotten stronger as you had fought side by side more and more. But you knew Sans had been drawing back. The last couple of months, something had shifted and you were almost too scared to address it head-on.

You didn’t think that it had anything to do with you but maybe you were just being naïve. It wasn’t uncommon for people to fall out of love unfortunately.

But as soon as you entertained the thought, you had to dismiss it again. You could feel how your soul and his soul reacted whenever you were close. You could feel with how much care he touched you. You could feel how he let you closer than anyone else. None of that had changed. The love burned hot, undeniable between you.

However, it seemed that there still were some walls that you had not managed to break through. Sans was mostly made up of secrets, and even if he had told you a lot, you knew there could still be some big ones hiding inside of that skull of his.

“I don’t know,” you said, shifting the bottle back and forth in your hand. “I know he still loves me, but lately he’s been acting weird. Well, weirder than usual. He’s more withdrawn and he’s… he’s not sleeping. I’m worried about him but I also know that that’s the last thing he wants, so I’m hesitant to confront him about it.”

You didn’t like talking about your and Sans’ relationship with anyone because everyone in your friend group was too involved and you never wanted anyone to feel like they had to pick sides in an argument. It wasn’t uncommon for you and Sans to have disagreements but then you had learned to open up and you always respected each other’s point of view.

But then again, Toriel had that maternal quality that just made you want to spill your guts. You had lost your family when you were just eleven years old and you had always had a soft spot for the goat monster since you had gotten to know her. She didn’t fill the void of your actual parents but sometimes you just needed the advice of someone more experienced, even if things were more complicated here because her and Sans had romantic history as well, even though it had been nearly a decade since then.

“Maybe you need to talk to him anyway,” Toriel suggested, softly. “He might not show it but you and I both know that he needs help sometimes and he would never ask for it. He is used to all of the responsibility resting on his shoulders, ever since he was left alone to raise Papyrus, but he does know that things are easier when you have help. Maybe, he needs a little push from you. You know him better than anyone and if you’re worried that he’s digging himself into a corner that he can’t get out of, then that’s probably what he is doing.”

You hummed as you contemplated her words and then pressed the heels of your hands into your eyes. This was not how you wanted today to go but you should have known that it couldn’t be all rainbows and sunshine.

It was a glorious day because it marked the day that monsters finally escaped their prison but it was also a highly emotional day in general, and that included negative feelings. You knew that Sans had hated the Underground and how Frisk had been playing around with timelines before everyone finally got out. He was undoubtedly relieved to have been able to get out but you also knew that he sometimes worried that all of his life here on the surface felt a bit too much like an intangible dream. He feared that one day he’d wake up back in his house Underground and it would all start over. You weren’t sure who would have the power to mess with the timeline except for Frisk but you couldn’t be sure that they were the only one.

It was very possible that he didn’t like the anniversary at all.

Grillby came in with food for both you and Toriel and the two of you happily dug in. You switched the topic from you and Sans to the festivities and you were happy to know that she thought the day had been a success too. You kept getting notifications through on your phone from Undyne, Frisk and Papyrus’ social media and they were clearly having a brilliant time. Once on social media, you also noticed that Mettaton was several hours into a livestream filmed from his chest and you were shocked at amount of people watching this. So many people were vicariously living through it and attending the party, as Mettaton navigated the crowds.

You just wanted to go home and fall asleep, even if it was still quite early in the night.

“Alright, I think I’ll be off,” you told Toriel. “Are you okay to get home by yourself in all of this mess? I could send Sans to help you, if I can find him that is.”

Toriel shook her head. “Grillby offered to escort me home once the bar closes and you know that no one dares to walk too close to him on account on his flames. So, I am taken care of. If you do see my child, please tell them to be careful?”

“You are aware that Frisk is of legal drinking age now, right? An adult in pretty much every sense of the word?” you teased as you lingered by the door.

“They are still my baby,” Toriel said unapologetically and your chest felt tight.

It was nice to have family that cared so much about you. Toriel must have seen the look in your eyes because she opened her arms and then you were in them and being hugged tightly in the way only a mother seemed to be able to do. You reminded yourself that these monsters had become your family too.

Frisk was like a younger sibling to you, as was Papyrus. Alphys and Undyne were like your crazy aunts. Toriel had taken a parental role to you. And Sans was your partner and you knew he would stand by you when you needed it.

At least, you had been sure of it until tonight when he hadn’t shown up. It wasn’t even that you’d been nervous about your speech because you had hardly had time to be nervous. It was the knowledge that you always showed up from each other and he had promised that he would be there. If it wasn’t because you’d seen him earlier and seen the distant look in his eyes, you would have been worried that something had happened to him again.

You let go of a deep sigh that you didn’t know you’d been holding and Toriel rubbed your back.

“Talk to him,” she coaxed softly. “It’s killing you. It’s probably killing him too. It’s not good for mates not to communicate, you know.”

You pulled back and flushed a little at her comment. Despite how long you and Sans had been together, despite what every monster who saw you together thought, you hadn’t officially agreed to be each other’s mates.

It was like marriage for monsters and while it was really a rather simple ceremony, it could be done just the two of you if you wanted, you had always hesitated to take the step. Things had been good. You put each other’s souls at ease. You weren’t sure if you should mess with that dynamic.

“Not mates,” you reminded her gently.

“You are in everything but the word,” she replied back and you smiled because she was right.

The walk home proved to be a little more difficult now that there seemed to be even more people running around in your city. A lot of them were also drunk and they freaked out in adorable ways when they saw you. You had never felt so loved and adored and you were showered in compliments for your “wicked awesome speech” as one of your new drunk friends put it.

Eventually, you made it into the small house and you closed the door behind you with a sigh. It was good to be back here, where you didn’t have to deal with people. Now you just had to deal with Sans. You headed straight for the laboratory and you found him, at his desk with his back to you, shuffling through thick stacks of papers with frustrated noises.

It was a testament to how distracted he was that he didn’t noticed that you’d come home and let alone that you were standing in the same room as him. You could feel your soul grow warmer just at the near proximity with him. You watched for several minutes before his head finally turned around and he saw you.

His normal grin fell into an awkward grimace. He looked like he expected you to be angry but really, you were just worried and confused.

“i’m sorry i didn’t show up,” he told you and made his way over to you. He reached out for your hands and you lifted them more out of reflex than anything else.

You wanted to chew him out because you didn’t like him flaking out of promises, even if you had been fine without him there. It was more than that. You had wanted him there to share in your happiness but you were trying to see if that was selfish and if he was really reacting poorly to the anniversary. You couldn’t read anything on his face.

“What are you working on?” you asked, instead of addressing his apology. You were not ready to accept it right now but you tried not to hold his absence against him.

“err… just research, you know. usual spiel.”

You narrowed your eyes. Sans usually delighted in going into details of his projects with you. He loved when the two of you could geek out over science together. It was another indication that everything was not alright.

You wanted to talk to him like Toriel had suggested but it just felt so hard. You could see that he was fragile right now. You could see it in the way he hunched forward with his hands inside of the pockets of his hoodie and how his eyes seemed dimmed and flickered around the room.

He was worn down and at his wits’ end. You didn’t want to push him over the edge in that state but you wished that he would just realize that he could talk to you. You wanted nothing more than to talk about what was bothering him.

Sans was secretive by nature and it always took a lot of coaxing to get him to open up. You had managed quite well over the years but then something like this would happen and you knew there was still more layers to Sans that you had yet to discover. It had never been this bad though.

You didn’t ask him what was wrong again because you knew that he’d brush it off or make a joke. You didn’t ask him why he was being so vague about what he was working on. You didn’t ask him why he felt like he couldn’t share his struggle with you all of a sudden.

You asked something different.

“Are you coming to bed? It’s been a long day and I could use some cuddles.”

Sans hesitated just for a beat before he was nodding and reaching out to hold your hand again. You stayed rooted in your spot, expecting him to take you through shortcut to the bedroom upstairs but he just looked at you with his dimmed pupils and you felt your worry increase.

You tried to recall if he’d been hesitant to use shortcuts lately but the truth was that you’d hardly seen him the past week, but you couldn’t recall having seen him using them. Last time that you’d noticed him foregoing shortcuts had been years ago before you had even gotten together properly. It was the night that he had opened up about his origin of being from the void and his father figure who had messed him up.

“Sans,” you said now because you suddenly felt like this was more important than you had realized.

“don't,” he said, softly, like a plea and your heart broke a little more. “let’s just go to sleep, yeah?”

You wanted to push again but you were tired and Sans clearly didn’t want to talk about it. Against your better judgement, you nodded and lead him up the stairs. You brushed your teeth side by side, got dressed in perfect sync and crawled under the duvet together and cuddled close together.

This felt familiar and safe. Sans’ hand found your back and he traced patterns into your skin as you let your thumb swipe back and forth over his knuckles on his other hand. Your breathing and his magic vibrations fell into a similar pattern and it was as if you breathed as one. You could still feel the care and love in the way he held you and touched you but his mind was miles away. His pinpricks disappeared entirely, leaving him with empty eye sockets which he usually only did when he wanted to look menacing but right now it just seemed to quietly happen, like he was zoning out and not looking at his surroundings.

It had been a long day and it was quickly catching up with you. It didn’t take long before you were drifting off under the rhythmic movement of Sans’ hand. It served as a bit of a comfort and a reminder. He knew he was being distant but he was trying to show you that he was still here. It was at least what you thought he was trying to express.

Maybe, it was the reason that you felt when the movement stopped and you were slowly being brought back out of your sleep as Sans gently slipped out of bed. You had thought that he’d done that before, sneaking off after you’d fallen asleep but this was the first time you woke up from it.

“Where are you going?” you said, voice too loud in the darkened and quiet room.

Sans froze, halfway out of the bed. He looked unsure of how to defend himself. You hated that he acted as if he had to come up with a defense at all. He wasn't supposed to have defenses like this against you.

“i just need to finish up some work. i’ll be back soon,” he said and for some reason that innocent but blatant lie was what made you snap.

“No, you won’t,” you said angrily and sat up in the bed. “You haven’t been sleeping. I’ve been so exhausted with the preparations for the anniversary that I haven’t known how to confront you but have you even gotten a wink of sleep in the last week? And even before that, you’ve been acting sketchy for over a month and you’re not telling me anything, Sans!”

“what?” he asked, still in his frozen position. “you think i’m cheating on you or something like that? do you really think i’d do that to you?”

He sounded like he was grasping for straws and that he was happier to believe that you thought he would actually be unfaithful to you than whatever he was really dealing with. It turned your stomach in the worst way. He was looking to ridicule you and be able to slip away without addressing the real issue.

“No,” you said sternly and looked into his faded pinpricks. “I think you’re going through something that’s pulling you apart and you’re pushing me away, even though you need help. I just want to help. We’re supposed to look out for each other, Sans.”

His demeanor changed and his pinpricks faded out on purpose now and he wore his menacing mask. He didn’t use that around you anymore but even so, it didn’t scare you to see it. It just worried you because for some reason he was pulling out all the stops to make you back away and it only made you want to get to the bottom of this even more.

“that’s… whatever,” he mumbled and then you saw the change in him.

He did always have a tendency to run away from conflicts when he felt overwhelmed and backed into a corner. It seemed that he wasn’t afraid to use his shortcuts, at least by himself, because you saw the slightest change in his posture and felt the flicker in the air. You would let him duck out of this so easily.

“No, you don’t,” you replied and threw yourself forward.

Your hand managed to close around his arm, grabbing the fabric of his hoodie and then everything tilted.

It felt like your stomach turned itself inside out and you tried to tighten you hold, to keep hold of Sans because the void was dangerous and it was too easy to forget when Sans used to travel through it constantly like it was no big deal, but you also knew that travelling with a passenger was a little different.

You hadn’t had contact with his bones when he’d jumped, only the material of his shirt. Suddenly, the blackness was all around you and you felt like the air was being ripped from your lungs. Then something was grabbing around your wrist almost painfully hard and you landed on the floor.

It took you a second to figure out that you still weren’t in the void because this place had terrible lighting but you could see walls and feel the ground beneath you and most importantly you could feel Sans, solid but pissed as he looked at you.

“don’t do that ever again,” he said, both sounding heartbroken and furious and then he was on you, wrapping himself around you as much as he could. He held onto you so tightly that it was almost painful and you were just trying to regulate your breathing.

You could feel the terror radiating off of him. You were still trying to process what had just happened. You had almost been dragged into the void without having a proper hold on him and been lost in it. You knew that your nightmares might come back now. It had been over a year since you’d woken in cold sweat, reminded of the time when the two of you had nearly gotten stuck there before.

“Sorry,” you forced out of your abused lungs and you grabbed onto Sans and hugged him back just as tightly.

“what were you thinking?” he asked and he sounded borderline hysteric. “you could have gotten lost in there! what have i told you about grabbing me when i shortcut?”

At his words you felt how some of the terror washed away and it was replaced with anger. You started to shove him away.

“I wouldn’t have to grab you if you weren’t running away! What the hell, Sans! We were in the middle of an argument and you can’t just duck out of there because you’re uncomfortable. I was only trying to help you. What is going on with you?”

You had expected him to become angry again, or maybe meet you with indifference anew but instead, he just looked defeated and sad. You stopped trying to get out of his hold and instead relaxed into it and reached up to trace his cheek bones with your thumbs.

“you can’t,” he choked out.

“What?” you asked, not understanding.

He shook his head and you could see the slight blue residue form in the bottom of his eye sockets. He was crying.

“you can’t help me.”

“I can try,” you said, ever acting like the optimist to Sans’ pessimism. “Please let me try. You don’t have to go through this alone. Whatever it is. Sans, you know I’m here for you. You comforted me on the anniversary of my family’s death. I was a wreck that whole week and you made it better. Please let me try to make it better for you too.”

You leaned forward to press a kiss to his forehead and you cradled him against your body. You managed your first glance around and this place looked like a laboratory but it wasn’t any of the laboratories that you’d ever been in before. It also seemed old and half-abandoned. Now was not time to question why Sans had made a shortcut to this place. You had a shaking skeleton in your embrace.

Sans sniffled and he was trembling in your arms. You didn’t speak but just held him and gave him time to recover.

“it’s the void,” he said and a chill went through your whole body. “something is wrong. it’s like someone has been tearing holes in it. it feels unstable. and if it’s unstable…”

He sounded terrified and you didn’t want him to continue but you knew he had to. You had been worried that it had been void related when he had refused to take you through it, even just for a quick jump up two floors. It was a piece of cake for Sans to travel through it but if he had sensed something wrong, he would never have put you in harm’s way. He always tried to protect you, even when he had little regard of his own safety. He had clearly not counted on you moving fast enough to be dragged through this shortcut.

You had learned a lot about Sans’ history through the years but he had never wanted to talk in depth about the void. All you knew was that Gaster had found the collection of bones in there that he would eventually manage to make into Sans and later the mad scientist had made Sans train to jump through it because he thought that he’d be able to make it past the barrier. Sans had been too young, too innocent and it had severely fucked with his HP. He had almost died thousands of times before he perfected the technique. You knew the void was a terrifying place that drained the life force out of you without being told. You'd felt it on your own body before and just now, it had felt like the same kind of terror.

“What, Sans?” you asked, gently but pushing him forward because you needed to know what he was so scared of.

It generally took a lot to scare Sans. You’d only ever seen him be scared when he thought that he might lose one of his loved ones. Anything else, he could face fearlessly, even when other people would have been terrified. He was a tough skeleton and his family was his only weakness.

“if the void grows unstable enough… _he_ can maybe come back out of it.”

“He?” you asked, even though you didn’t want to know the answer.

Sans tilted his head up to look at you. Blue was smudged around his eye sockets and his bones were rattling against you. His pinpricks were there but they vanished again now.

“w. d. gaster.”

You suddenly understood why Sans was acting scared. It was a family member that had gotten him to the point again, but not because he wanted to protect them. Because it was the one person that should have been looking after him and instead, he had just used him and left him with scars that would never fully heal. The dark lighting seemed to flicker around you and you flinched. You didn’t like this. Not one bit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHHH! Did any of you figure it out? Listen, I always wanted to play more around with Sans' backstory and really dive into it. It's mentioned in the first work but he never really deals with any of it. Now is the time for that. Also, having our dear reader and Sans back is just making me very happy. I hope you enjoyed this first chapter and there is so much more to come. Comments are very, very welcome!
> 
> This story will run on a weekly schedule, updating every Wednesday around 8 PM CEST.
> 
> I'm currently doing PEDIA (Posting Every Day In August) so I'm going to be uploading loads, not anymore Undertale works unfortunately but if you like Phan or BTS, I might have something for you.


	2. A New Citizen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With a surprise new arrival in New New Home and a skeleton more on edge than ever, she had more than enough to balance. On top of that the void potentially being unstable left both monsters and humans vulnerable to too many threats.

The anniversary event was a huge success. You had been too distracted by Sans’ absence to check the response on social media until the day after. For once you had finally managed to pull Sans back into bed with you, and he had stayed there the whole night.

You were fairly sure that he hadn’t been sleeping but you had fallen asleep and woken in his arm in the morning and you could feel the warmth from you still lingering on his bones, which meant he likely hadn’t moved and tried to sneak off again. He had had a lot to think about and you hadn’t really gotten a sensible word out of him after he had mentioned Gaster’s name. You hadn’t expected so. You hadn’t really had a conversation about Gaster in years. Sans had told you once, back when you were just starting to trust each other but since then he had avoided the topic like the plague. You were fairly sure that he had more trauma about it than he was letting on.

You hadn’t been sure if it was the right strategy to blatantly ignore it but at the same time you hadn’t felt like it was your decision to make. You had only tried to support Sans in how he had chosen to deal with it.

Now, though…

You weren’t sure what to do but it was clear that something had to be done. Nightmares had always been part of Sans’ life, at least since you’d known him, but this thing of almost never sleeping was a new extreme of it. And if Sans was truly worried that the void was becoming unstable then all of you had too much to worry about.

The void was the fabric between worlds and you weren’t sure what could happen if it truly was unstable. You didn’t want Gaster anywhere near Sans or Papyrus if he could actually come back, somehow having survived through the years, but you also worried about things on a grander scale.

It was the reason that you headed straight for the head laboratory in the morning after you’d checked up on the response to the anniversary. You were beyond pleased that it had gone so well, further cementing the goodwill between humans and monsters but it was almost difficult to celebrate it properly when you were in such inner turmoil and wrought with worry.

You hated that it reminded you of your early days in New New Home when you had been on edge all the time, either striving for survival, rescue of Frisk or figuring out how to stop the war. Things had quieted down these past years. You had let yourself fall more into the everyday. You worried now that you had become too complacent. Too comfortable.

None of you had been prepared for a threat like this.

You had only watched the human and monster relations as they had grown stronger and better with each day passing. It had been a slow and strenuous process but it had been progressing. You had let yourself hope that things would be good now.

You should have known the quiet didn’t last forever. Life was made of ups and downs.

The laboratory had grown and expanded in the last few years too. Sans and Alphys still had their own offices and work spaces but Professor Goodwin had also moved in and gotten one. A few colleagues from university had also been granted spaces, a couple monsters and a handful of humans. It was much livelier now. You had been granted your own office as well, even if you usually took more of an interest in the public relations than the science these days.

“Alphys,” you called as you walked off the elevator and into Alphys’ section. It was the largest and she worked as the head of the laboratory, even if giving her that position had nearly made her spiral into a panic attack. Thankfully, Undyne had been nearby and able to calm her down. Those two were really good for each other. And Alphys was an excellent director of the laboratory. Through joint effort, the lab had almost perfected a serum extracted from monster food that could help heal more serious chronic illnesses.

“Doey!!”

Before you could react a small blue and yellow monster had come charging at you and leapt up into your arms. You giggled, quickly locking your arms around the three-year-old monster.

“Hi Mewlie,” you said, pressing a kiss to one of her horns, while you hitched her up to sit properly on your hip. “You helping your Mommy?”

Mewlie nodded, proud smile on her face. She was a little terrifying when she smiled, with the sharp teeth that had started to fill out her mouth in these past couple of months.

“I’m best helper!”

“Oh, I’m sure,” you said, walking through the door and into Alphys’ office.

You spotted the scientist behind a mountain of paperwork and she offered you a warm smile when she saw you with her daughter. It really was a wonderful thing to know that Alphys who once had been terrified of you now smiled at the sight of you holding the person most precious to her in your arms.

She had been very protective of Mewlie just when she had been born but it had gotten better now. You were fairly sure that it helped immensely when Mewlie had announced that you were her favorite aunt. You weren’t related in anyway, but you had still accepted the title with pride.

“Sorry, our sitter was ill and Undyne had training of the new Royal Guards, so it became a bring Mewlie to work day.”

“I’m sure she’s offering all the smart contributions,” you said, turning to the child in your arms, “aren’t you?”

“YES!” she announced happily.

You put her down in her little corner, a blanket spread out that was filled with loads of figurines. You were pretty sure they were all anime characters.

“I didn’t think you’d come into the laboratory today,” Alphys remarked, shuffling papers in her claws. “I thought you said you’d spend the day monitoring the channels and check that everything was going fine after the big event yesterday.”

“I was supposed to…” you said, feeling a little bad that you had been slacking on that. “But…”

“Oh, no.”

“What?”

“That’s your we’re-in-trouble voice. I hate that voice,” Alphys said, coiling her tails behind her. “What it is? Something with Sans? He wasn’t there yesterday.”

So, you weren’t the only one who had taken notice of his absence. You only hoped that the media hadn’t picked up on it too much. Despite his best efforts, he was one of the most famous monsters. He was also one of the ones that humans feared the most after having both heard stories and seen his power in action.

“Yeah, kind of. It’s about Sans but also, not.”

“You’re not reassuring me at all,” Alphys said, casting a glance over at Mewlie.

“It might not be something, but… how much do you know about the void?”

Alphys paled, which was really something of an accomplishment when her complexion was bright yellow.

“The void? That’s Sans’ specialty much more than mine. But… I know a little. It’s kind of required for monsters, I suppose, if we want to be scientists. Or at least, it was Underground. For a long time, we thought that the void was the solution to getting through the barrier. It’s a fabric between time and space. There’s still a lot of mystery about it, but we do know that it’s a specific strain of magic that you have to access to interact with it. It’s not… monster magic.”

“What do you mean?”

Alphys shot you a strained smile and tapped her claws against the surface of her desk.

“You know Sans’ history better than I, probably… but I do know that both him and Papyrus are not your usual monsters. They’re… created from material from the void. I read old journals about it, the experiment of creating a creature from the void to use to get through the barrier.”

“Gaster’s journals,” you guessed.

Alphys nodded. “Yes. He was the Royal Scientist before I took over and I got access to all of his research. Or rather most of it. I am still sure he hid some away because there are too many missing pieces. But Sans is the only monster I’ve ever heard of who can possess void magic. I suppose Papyrus might be able to learn too, but Sans always vehemently rejected that idea.”

You remembered how Sans had spoken about the torture of being trapped in there. Of being made to jump through it again and again until it felt like it had torn him apart. Even then, you were sure that he had glossed over the horrible details, only telling you enough to know that it wasn’t something you should ask about. You could understand why Sans wanted Papyrus to be as far away from anything related to the void as possible.

“He’s always trying to protect Pap.”

“I know,” Alphys said, and looked over at Mewlie. “I don’t think I g-got it. B-before.”

Her stammer had nearly gone away over the years, but it still came out when she was nervous or emotional or she was talking to someone new. Right now, you could see the love in her eyes as she looked at her daughter. “But we have recordings of humans being able to access void magic.”

“You mean Frisk?”

“Yes, but also the old, old scripts from before we were locked Underground. Frisk’s ability is rare but they were not the only one. Determined souls are the ones documented to have the closest connection to the void and magic from there. Time and space manipulation.”

This was news to you.

“You mean there are others like Frisk?” you asked and thought of the magical children and teenagers who were currently enrolled in the school here. You hadn’t seen any of them exhibit the type of magic that was anything like Frisk. But then again, you were pretty sure that none of them had determined souls.

“Yes,” Alphys said and shivered. “I’ve only met one other but that was more than enough.”

“Who?”

“They’re dead now.”

There was something about her tone, and you weren’t sure if it was more a case of her speaking her wishful thinking into the world or stating an actual fact. You didn’t press. Alphys’ tone already told you all that you needed to know.

“Mommy?” Mewlie asked from her blanket, figurines clutched in each hand.

“Yes, darling?”

“Why is Doe sad?”

You felt like a jolt went through you. Even though you lived in a city with loads of monsters, it was a little easy to forget just how much they could sometimes read from humans. Most adult monsters would never voice it out loud but child monsters were still learning what they could and couldn’t say. What stuck you was more the fact that you hadn’t felt sad. You were not sure that you were sad, but you were worried. A lot more worried than you had been trying to let on.

“Doe is just thinking very hard about something that it difficult,” Alphys explained. “But darling, you cannot ask about such stuff.”

“Oh, okay,” Mewlie said and went back to her figurines without much trouble.

“Am I radiating sadness?” you asked, in a hushed whisper to Alphys.

“You’re on edge and worried. That much is clear from your tone and body language alone. What is it with all these questions about the void? And Sans? Why is it that you’re coming to ask me instead of him?”

“Sans is worried.”

“Oh, no.”

“That the void is…”

“I-is?”

“Becoming unstable.”

Alphys slapped a claw over her mouth and you were certain that you heard a muffled curse behind it. Then she scurried around the side of her table to latch onto your arm, urgency in how tightly she gripped you.

“He’s worried about Chara?”

“Chara?” you asked, slightly confused. It was a name you’d heard before but only in passing. All you knew was that it was a child that Toriel and Asgore had adopted. But Toriel never really talked about all the family members she had lost.

“What? If it’s not Chara that he’s worried about then… oh, of course. Gaster?”

“Yes, but why are you more worried about this Chara?”

Alphys let go of you, shaking her head.

“Sans would be more worried about Chara too if he didn’t have personal investment in Gaster. Both of them are dangerous but Chara… they are part of another league. They’re supposed to be dead. Gone for good. But… humans with void magic are always someone to be feared.”

“Frisk has void magic,” you reminded her.

Something shifted in the room as you looked at her then. There was something haunted in her eyes.

“Frisk should never be underestimated. I… I know there’s a lot I don’t know about what happened in the Underground, but… I’ve never seen Sans like behave with Frisk like anyone else. He loves them. A lot. But he’s on g-guard. He knows s-something about Frisk.”

You knew it too. Sans had told you about the massacres. He had told you how Frisk had forgotten about all of it when they had first emerged from the Underground. But you also knew that Frisk had remembered when you and them had tried to reset the timeline. You had gone to a place that was also trapped between realms and Frisk had remembered their past actions, but they had forgotten about them again once they were out. But you had their face of anguish and guilt burned into your memory even to this day.

“Frisk is a good kid,” you said because that was what Sans always said and you knew he meant it. He really did love Frisk so much. Sans had forgiven him for all the horrors he must have seen in the alternate timelines when Frisk had gotten curious.

“I know,” Alphys said and shifted a little. “Frisk is one of ours, but humans with void magic are always vulnerable. The void is a terrible thing. It’s emotionless. Cold. You know better than I.”

And you did. You had nearly gotten lost inside of it once. And just yesterday you had come close again, even if that was a much shorter stumble. You had still felt the coldness starting to creep into your bones. It would have consumed you, if you’d let it, or rather if Sans had let it.

“If the void is becoming unstable like Sans thinks…”

“Then we’re all in trouble,” Alphys said. “I’ll… I try to talk to him. I doubt he’ll listen much to me but I am the monster who knows the second most about the void in this realm. Maybe, I can look over his readings or research.”

You hated that Alphys sounded so worried, but you knew you needed every ally you had in this fight. It wasn’t often you were willing to pit yourself against Sans but you knew him and you knew he would try to solve this all on his own. You were terrified that one day you’d wake up and he would just be gone. Maybe lost to the void.

The more terrifying thought was the possibility that he would just disappear and you would all forget him. The void’s power was not be messed with.

“Thank you,” you said sincerely reaching over to pull Alphys into a hug. She grumbled a little but after a beat she hugged you back. It had taken you two a long time to work up to the hugs, but it had been Alphys who had eventually started giving you awkward back pats or tugging on your arm and you’d realized that it was a small way of inciting hugs.

“We’ll pray that he’s mistaken,” Alphys said but she didn’t sound very convinced. It was a weak attempt at lightening the mood, since both of you knew it wasn’t likely that Sans would get something like this wrong.

He had given the void years of his life. Both literally and figuratively.

You stuck around for another ten minutes, as you were roped into playing with Mewlie and there was something very simplistic in fighting with figurines where the heroes wore white and the villains wore black. It was not the world you lived in but it was nice to pretend, even just for a moment.

Afterwards, you did make it back to your own office and you finally started to work through your emails and look over the reactions in the various hashtags that had popped up in relation to the monsters. #10YearsOfMonstersOverGround. #MonsterFreedom10thAnniversary. #HumanMonsterSolidarity. It was lovely to look over those tags, as long as you didn’t mind the few trolls that had snuck in. You were happy to see bits of the speeches quoted all over the place, including your words. It was not something you had expected when you had started this whole thing, but you had found that words had much more power than you’d given them credit for. Your words had since helped convince a lot of both monsters and people.

It was well into the afternoon by the time you let your mind drift away from work and to Sans instead. He had been quiet this morning when you’d woken up in your arms. He had shared breakfast with you before announcing that he was going down to the basement to do some more work. You had wanted to ask what he was working on, to press for him to tell you more, but his face had been so closed off and you knew it would only end in disaster.

Still, you felt like you needed to try to find another opportunity tonight. Sans had seemed terrified out of his mind last night at the mere idea that Gaster could come back to haunt him. Maybe he was even blinded by it, if Alphys was right and there was a bigger threat that you all needed to worry about.

You were just getting ready to shut your computer and leave for the day when suddenly the temperature in the room dropped. However, you felt a warmth in the center of your chest, right where your souls were. It felt like it grew itchy and hot while the room around you chilled and made your body break into goose pimples. It was very unsettling but you didn’t manage more than to stand up before it felt like your feet were yanked from under you.

You barely managed to avoid smashing into your desk as you were pulled to the center of the room where it seemed coldest.

And then there was someone in front of you.

Your first instinct was to scream but it felt like the air around you was not only cold but void of oxygen as well and the scream died in your lungs. You stumbled backwards, knocking your butt into your desk, as you stared at the person in front of you. Undyne had trained you well, and you could stand yourself against most intruders but you found yourself hesitating.

The person that had appeared out of nowhere in front of you was a teenager. Long black hair and a yellow and green spotted jumper that seemed to shallow their whole frame. They reminded you mildly of the girl from The Ring with how the long hair hanging to cover the face, but their shoulders were hunched in and shaking. They looked small and terrified, much more scared than you felt.

“Who are you?” you asked, voice a little high pitched and squeaky. The air around you seemed to become warmer again with each passing breath. You wanted to grab for your desk lamp between you, just if you needed a weapon but you kept your hands gripping the edge of the desk instead. You had taught yourself to be someone who gave people the benefit of the doubt before you judged them. You had suffered too much and been ruled by your prejudice and you hadn’t wanted that to be the case anymore.

“Are you Doe? Monster Ambassador?” the teenager asked. They looked worried and on edge, looking at their surroundings like she wasn’t really aware of where she was. “Am I in New New Home?”

You had a lot of questions but at least you let yourself calm down a little. This person didn’t look dangerous, even if it was undoubtedly frightening that they had somehow managed to appear right in your office. The laboratory had been put under a special type of protective magic to prevent break ins as so much of the research conducted here was important.

“You’re in New New Home,” you confirmed, “And I am known as Doe but I’m not a monster ambassador. We don’t have those anymore, not since before the war, and even back then it was Frisk, the kid who freed monsters from Underground. However, they still get called the ambassador unoffically.”

“But you-”

“I think it is my time for questions now,” you said asserting yourself, standing tall. “Who are you and what are you doing in my office?”

You had a button for security as well. It would both alert a monster who worked in the laboratory and it would also send a message to the Royal Guards. You knew that both Undyne and Papyrus would come charging her the moment they saw the distress message from your office. If Sans was told by any of them, he would be here in a literal second through a shortcut.

But something kept you from pressing it. You felt a deep burn of curiosity and despite everything that had just happened, you didn’t feel threatened. In fact, there was something about this teenager that reminded you a little too keenly of Frisk.

“My name is Nova, pronouns she/her,” she said easily, introducing herself like so many other teenagers did in this day and age. Older people still seemed to stumble over that but you were glad for the natural way that people talked about pronouns now, especially because Frisk doing the same with their gender-neutral pronouns was more accepted. “And I’m here because of your speech.”

“My speech?”

“Children with magic,” Nova said, glaring a little intimidatingly, almost like she was daring you to argue with her.

You did not intend to argue at all, not after you had seen her pop out of nowhere, accompanied by an itch in your soul and the chill in the room. You had absolutely no doubt that she was magic. She was a little on the older side, compared to the other children with magic who came here, as she looked to be in her late teens. Maybe she was even a legal adult, despite her youthful look.

“Okay,” you said easily.

Nova had clearly expected you to put up more of a fight. She scrunched her eyebrows and shifted her feet from side to side.

“Just like that?”

“Just like that,” you said, “except you have to tell me how you got here.”

Then she froze up again, like you had expected. She was looking at you like you were an authority figure, someone adult and in a position of power. You never felt like that yourself. Even your mid twenties, you didn’t feel like you were a proper adult yet. You had a sinking feeling that proper adulthood was just something people had made up anyway.

“I… jumped.”

“Jumped?” you asked.

It was still your curiosity keeping you in this room. You should have reached out for back-up. You were not the one who handled kids who came in with magic. It was Toriel’s department as the head of the school and she was excellent with children and teenagers. It was like she always knew the right thing to say. You had never had that ability, even if you were proud that you had managed to form bonds with both Frisk who had been a teenager when you’d met and now little Mewlie.

“I… can jump… from place to place, if-if I know who I’m looking for,” Nova said, nervously eying you. “But you can’t tell anyone that! It’s-it’s…”

“Hey, calm down,” you said. “You’re safe here, okay? We’ve got loads of magic people. Frisk is a very dear friend of mine. They’re magic too. Magic humans are safe here.”

“Yeah, that’s what you all keep saying,” Nova said, eying you suspiciously.

“If you’re worried that we’re being disingenuous, why show up at all?”

Nova let out a snort, like you were being purposely obtuse. When she saw your expression, she grimaced instead.

“I have to do something… my family… they don’t understand, it’s… bad. And you,” she said suddenly looking very intensely directly at you. “I felt something when I saw you, a pull from deep within me. I assumed that it meant I was supposed to find you.”

There was something ominous about those words, something you didn’t quite like the sound of. It almost sounded like Nova had found you through your soul and it had certainly felt like that, but how could that even be possible. She might have seen you on television but surely that shouldn’t be enough for her to get a soul reading. Monsters couldn’t even do that. You had never met any monster other than Sans who could read a human’s soul while it was inside of your body. You had never even thought that a human could use it as a beacon. It made you feel a little on edge, if that was the actual case.

But you couldn’t let your discomfort show in front of a new arrival in the city, even if she had come in through a very unconventional channel. It was almost like she had jumped through the void like Sans, only nothing ever got cold when he did it, and you knew he remembered and sought for locations rather people.

“We’ll help you, of course, there’s a test we do on all our new arrivals who suspect they might have magic. It’s to help determine what kind of magic and what levels of strength that they have.”

“So… you’ll really do it?”

“Yes, of course, though it’s pretty clear to see that you have magic. Most people fill out a request to come here, or more often than not their parents does but we have had people just show up. The ones whose parents don’t understand. Normally, we find them at the city limit but this works as well.”

Nova looked like she might start crying any moment and you were reminded that there was a reason that you didn’t handle this normally. You weren’t sure how to handle any of this. You reached over to offer her a glass of water while you pulled out your phone and called Toriel.

“Hello, my dear,” Toriel greeted you nicely as she picked up the phone. “What do I owe the pleasure?

She always answered the phone like that and just like usual, it made you smile.

“Hi Tori. I need you to come to the laboratory. We’ve got a new arrival. A teenager with magic?”

“Oh! Another potential magic human?”

“Err… not as much as potential as pretty much confirmed based on how she arrived completely out of the blue in the middle of my office, but I figure that we still need to go through all the normal procedures?”

“I am not entirely sure what you mean but I’ll head your way at once. Let’s meet in the scanner room?”

Nova looked at you, water glass clutched tightly in her hands.

“Who’s that?”

“Toriel, she’s the-”

“Queen of Monsters,” Nova said, interrupting you. “Yeah, I know. It feels like all the news have ever talked about are monsters, ever since they emerged. First the shock, then the war and now the adjustment and attempt for peace.”

“How old were you when they emerged?” you asked.

“7,” Nova answered. “I thought it was so cool. I begged my mother to be allowed to come visit this town but she said it was too far. And too dangerous.”

Like so many others, you thought to yourself. You had been older, by nearly a decade, but you remember the fascination. It was one of those moments in time that you knew it would go down in history. You had just been a lost teenager yourself, nothing special. Five years later, you had played a vital role in the end of the war against monsters. It was something that still didn’t sink in at most times. Your name had gotten into the history books now, without really meaning to.

“They’re not dangerous. By large, they are gentler and kinder than humans.”

“Doesn’t take much, does it? Humans are scrum.”

There was a different edge in Nova’s tone now, deeper, and it sounded almost slightly distorted as she spit out the hateful words. For a beat, it was like the room chilled again. You felt an uncomfortable surge in your stomach.

“You shouldn’t talk like that. About anyone. There are bad people but most are good still.”

Something felt like it shifted in the air and Nova leaned forward now, shoulders hunched in a little. Defeated and tired, instead of the arrogant and hateful appearance she had a moment before.

“Can you truly say that? Wasn’t it humans who have killed most of the monsters? Tried to enslave them? Tried to push them back and away, just like they did once before? Just because they do not understand.”

“I am not here to forgive sins, but I’m not here to place damnations either,” you said, resolutely. “Let’s go to the scanner room and get you set up. You can meet Toriel.”

“Wait, it’s real? The thing about the school being run by the Queen of Monsters? I thought that was just a PR stunt for the cameras?” Nova questioned.

“No, it’s quite real,” you assured her as you ushered her out the door before following yourself. “Toriel has always wanted to be a teacher, and she is an excellent one. Besides, her magical situation makes her uniquely situated to help humans struggling with control of their magic as well.”

“But it is possible… to gain control?”

The way Nova asked, you had a feeling that there was a very specific reason that she was asking. You wanted to push, always hungry for more knowledge but you had seen how Nova clammed shut before and you weren’t sure if this was the place to ask, walking down the hall. You passed one of the human professors who eyed you a little but you just smiled and nodded as you passed with Nova. At times, they had been after you because they thought you spent too much time away from research to be a “real scientist” but none of them actually had the balls to say that to your face.

You found the scanner room easily, and you were happy to find it empty. It was used for a lot of different research because Sans and Alphys had finally been able to build a machine that could mimic Sans’ ability to pull a soul out without engaging in combat. Sans had been happy to be relieved by the machine to do the work.

Nova looked a little intimidated by the huge machine, even as you just asked her to sit at the table in the corner. You went to check the settings on the machine, adjusting them to just a simple trait and magic reading for now. Toriel was in charge of the magical children but she didn’t have the most expertise with the soul scanning machine. It wasn’t the first time you’d helped out.

“What about you?” Nova asked all of a sudden, out of the blue.

“What about me, do you mean?”

“Do you have magic?” she asked, but there was that tone back in her voice. The way she dragged her syllables just a little too much. Like something was off.

You turned around to look at Nova but she was still sitting on the chair, looking a little small and worried, despite the bite in her tone.

“I do not have magic, no,” you said. It was still the truth, even if you had learned that you could act like a bit of a conduit to magic. You could help someone access more of their magic, through your touch but Sans had insisted that it wasn’t magic like they understood it but instead the strength in the human connection. You didn’t want to go into the details with a stranger.

“Then how?” Nova asked, and now something in her posture shifted as well.

You had a feeling that you were going to regret asking but you did it all the same.

“What do you mean?”

“How are you one of the most powerful humans in this monster city? You have the phone number of the queen, and you’re together with the most powerful monster, are you not? You are the face of the monster human relations, along with the kid who freed everyone. But they’re powerful, aren’t they?”

You did not like this line of question at all.

“Nova, I do not know you but I assume you know that it is rude to ask about someone else’s magic or lack thereof? Everyone is accepted here, whether they have magic or not, and they are also free to share that fact about themselves but we don’t go around and tell on others. When you meet Frisk, they might very well tell you, if you ask politely but it is their information to share, not mine.”

“Oh, sorry,” Nova said, frowning again. You got the sense that it was like Nova was more confused with herself rather than you.

A quiet atmosphere settled as you fiddled with the dials just to keep your hands busy. There was a thought in the back of your head, as you pondered how you had seen Nova teleport. Jumped, as she had said. It could only really mean through the void, if you had to guess. You didn’t know of any other way to move like that. But even Frisk hadn’t been able to do something like that. Frankly, you had never seen anything like it.

Another one who could jump through the void. You wondered how long Nova had been able to do that.

You knew that in most children, magic started to manifest and show itself when they were pre-teens. It should mean that Nova should have been aware of her magic for a long time, due to her age. It would have made more sense if she had joined when New New Home had opened the magical school a couple of years ago. You weren’t sure what would possess her to do this now. You weren’t sure what to make of her story about seeing you had felt like a deep pull within her. It sounded odd, and you weren’t sure what to make of it.

And you were worried. Something related to the void happening right now when Sans had been going a bit insane about it for a few weeks. It felt like too much of a coincidence.

There was a knock on the door, and you called out for the person to come in. You had expected to see Toriel but you were a little surprised to see Frisk poke their head in after their adoptive mother.

You signed hello to Frisk, and said hello to Toriel. Both greeted you as well but they were more focused on looking at Nova’s direction.

“Frisk wanted to tag along?” you asked Toriel.

“Yes,” she confirmed. “Frisk became curious too when I relayed what you had said. And they’re always eager to meet a new classmate.”

Technically, Frisk wasn’t in the magical school anymore but they visited often enough that it was like they almost attended. All the children loved Frisk, and Frisk had learned more than one trick with their magic to show off. It was always a big hit. But since Frisk was 21 now, there were always quite a few years of an age gap but Nova was older than most of the other students.

Frisk was quicker than you, walking up to Nova and offering a handshake.

“Hello,” Nova said, sounding almost nervous as she took Frisk’ hand and shook it.

Frisk smiled at them, hands signing excitedly. Toriel had picked up on signing better in the years you’d known her but it was never something that came easy and you leaned into the role of interpreter.

“Frisk says that they’re happy to meet you,” you told Nova, eyes intensely watching Frisk’s hands as they moved. “And that they think you’ll be a really interesting person if you managed to get here through magic. They’re envious of your ability to travel. They have always wanted Sans to…”

You stopped translating even as Frisk’s hands kept moving. They stopped when they could hear that you didn’t keep speaking. They repeated the sentence again but you still didn’t want to say it out loud. In fact, it had frightened you a little.

They were saying how they had always wanted Sans to teach them to do a shortcut through the void.

You knew Sans wouldn’t have liked that, not one bit. He was terrified of anyone getting hurt in the void and he would have put up a storm of a protest if Frisk had wanted to learn. But that wasn’t even what surprised you. It was the way Frisk signed, so sure of themselves, and so sure that Nova had come through the void.

You knew it had to be the explanation, because you had no idea how else someone could move through time and space but it felt different spelled out like this. And you didn’t want Nova to know about the void. Not yet. Your inner voice was telling you to be cautious, and it sounded remarkably like Sans.

“Frisk said that they are really looking forward to helping you with your magic,” you said, purposely translating incorrectly.

Toriel seemed to catch onto that it wasn’t quite right, and Frisk looked downright betrayed. You made a couple of clumsily signed sentences yourself trying to let them know that you didn’t want to talk about the void so openly. Frisk crossed their arms and glared at you. You apologized again.

“If you two think you’re being subtle, you aren’t,” Nova commented. “Not at all.”

Frisk pointed at her and then wagged their finger in your face.

“Right, I’m sorry, that was a private conversation,” you apologized to Nova. “Should we get the scanning done? Toriel?”

You said her name a little desperately, needing her to step up to the plate and distract. She did so happily.

As Nova got settled into the machine, you took a step back and just observed. Frisk still made you interpret for them, but you did so happier now that they stayed away from technically classified topics. The interpreting kept you busy, Frisk being quite the chatterbox as long as they had someone who understood that could help them communicate.

“All done,” Toriel said, and the machine ceased its buzzing. The printer immediately started marking noise, whirring to life.

Nova still looked a little apprehensive about all of it. She almost looked like Sans right before he had been ready to bolt yesterday. You wouldn’t be surprised if she could be out of here in the blink of an eye if she wanted.

But even as unusual as her arrival had been, she had come to New New Home for the same reason as so many other kids and teenagers. They were lost and dealing with something that no one around them understood. Nova was alight in Frisk’s company as Frisk, through you, continued to tell them about how nice it was to have magic and sharing stories from the other kids at the school.

Toriel went to retrieve the rapport, clutching it carefully between her cloves. She glanced over it, reading it like she had so many other young humans who had come here to be tested. Only, you’d never seen her made that face before.

“It’s… it is saying unstable reading,” she explained to the three of you in the room.

“What does that mean?” Nova asked, looking increasingly more anxious.

“It means that the machine could not read you properly,” Toriel said thoughtfully. “It couldn’t get your soul color or determine your levels of magic, not like it is supposed to do. It did pick up an abundance of determination, so maybe that it messing with the readings.”

“What about the magic levels?” you asked, walking over to look at the rapport yourself.

You were vaguely familiar with how they were supposed to look. The first page dedicated to the soul reading had indeed read as unstable, but picking up high levels of determination more than any of the other soul traits. That was to be expected with the display of magic that you’d seen when Nova arrived but it didn’t explain why it couldn’t classify it as a determined soul then.

Toriel flipped the page to the readings of Nova's magic levels and you tried to control your face as you read the numbers.

Most humans would read somewhere between 0-10 on the scale and that meant they had no magic or so little magic that they wouldn’t be able to channel it if they tried. Most of the magic kids at the school had a reading from between 20-35, which seemed to be the standard for young humans just discovering their magic.

Frisk on the machine had read as an astonishing 51.

Nova’s reading was 66.

“What?” she asked. “Is it bad?”

You and Toriel looked at each other, not sure how to explain that she had more than double the magic of a usual magical kid and more than 15 points over Frisk who could literally turn the time back.

Toriel seemed stunned into silence and you forced yourself out of your own silence.

“No,” you said honestly, even if you were a little worried. “It’s not bad. You definitely have magic. I suspect it’s just a different branch than what the machine is used to reading.”

“Is that bad?” Nova asked, sounding very worried and insecure.

Frisk started to sign that it was never bad to be different and any magic was good magic. When you translated their words, Nova looked a little more at ease.

“Thanks, Frisk.”

“You know, in this case, I do think we could need Sans,” Toriel said.

“Her boyfriend, right?” Nova asked, pointing directly at you.

You weren’t sure that it was a good idea, not with Sans being so cagey and on edge. You weren’t entirely sure that it wasn’t connected to Nova. The most powerful magic human the two of you had ever seen? Arriving through the void in a mysterious manner? Sans would have a freak out.

Frisk was already calling him, before either you or Toriel could stop them. You found that you kind of hoped that Sans would be dodging their calls too, but you knew it was unlikely seeing how he adored Frisk so much. And he would know that if Frisk was calling, it wasn’t just for a chat. They only called when they needed something.

“’ello,” Sans’ voice came through the phone.

Frisk's phone had a built-in service where they could type and it would speak it through the phone. You could not hear it on your end, but you could see their fingers typing really fast.

“hold up, kid. repeat that.”

Frisk was typing so fast, nimble small fingers flying over the keys.

“you’re doing what? a kid that’s what? hold on,” Sans said again.

Only a second later he was standing in the room with you, phone still pressed to the side of his skull.

Frisk smiled and then pointed at Nova.

“yeah, i got that,” Sans said, almost a little rudely. It was only then that he noticed you and Toriel looking at him. You didn’t like that this was happening at all. It seemed like a bomb waiting to go off. Nova looked increasingly nervous at the appearance of Sans but at least she hadn’t tried to jump through the void or anything yet.

Small victories.

“So, you’re Sans, the terrifying skeleton,” Nova said, not sounding one bit scared. “I thought you’d be taller.”

Sans’ narrowed his eye sockets at the jest and inspected Nova with his keen eyes.

“Sans,” Toriel interrupted before Sans might actually start sending glowing bones heading right for Nova. “We wanted your second opinion, and potentially your help in analyzing Nova here. The machine seems a little confused.”

“that’s ‘cause it can’t read void magic very well,” Sans said, not even looking at Toriel as he was speaking. He hadn’t taken his eyes off of Nova. “too fickle. it messes with the purity of the reading.”

“It was just the soul reading that went amiss. It read Nova’s magic numbers just fine,” you said, not at all liking how Sans had brought up the void. He was still looking like he was waiting for a reaction or maybe even an explanation from Nova but you didn’t think that he would get one anytime soon.

“what’s the number?”

“Sans,” you protested.

“doe, what’s the number?”

You let out a sigh, gridding your teeth and very much wanting to give him a bash over the head. He was like a dog with a bone when he latched onto something. His focus became singular. The way he was holding himself was even guarded and almost in attack position.

“66.”

Finally, Sans allowed himself a quick look over at you and you read the shock in his eyes. He was not the only one that was shocked. Frisk started gaping in surprise, and then waving their arms around in something that might have been supposed to be signs but they were too excited and you couldn’t make out the actual meaning when their hands moved so sloppily.

Sans had always been the best at sign language after Frisk.

“no, it’s not cool, kid. it’s dangerous,” Sans told Frisk.

“Why?" Nova asked. “Is it a bad number?”

“Just higher than expected, my dear,” Toriel said and stepped up to put herself in between Nova and Sans. Just like Sans would lock his eyes onto any potential threat, so would Toriel step into help a young soul that was struggling. It was in both of their natures. “But it is nothing to be worried about.”

Sans looked like he wanted to say something but he was keeping it to himself.

Frisk tugged your sleeve, getting your attention so that you could interpret for them, because Sans wouldn’t spare them a side glance now.

“Frisk is saying that it is completely okay, Nova. It’s even higher than… than a lot of other magic children,” you said, not saying that it was higher than Frisk’s score which was what they were really saying. They frowned at you but their hands kept moving on. “They’re saying that it must have been a lot to deal with on your own. They are so happy that you can come here and learn at the school now. You’re not alone anymore.”

Everything in the room changed then, and that’s when you realized how much Nova must be affecting the energy surrounding you. From tense and ready to blow, everything seemed to ease up a little.

“Wait, do you mean that? I can stay?”

Your heart was breaking a little. Nova seemed just like a lost teenager, and you wanted to help her. Toriel looked to be right in the boat with you and Frisk also smiled gently.

Sans was the only one who didn’t seem convinced.

“no.”

Frisk signed quickly and angrily asking Sans what they meant by saying no.

“Sans, you cannot-” Toriel started to say.

Sans ignored both of them.

“i said no.”

“It’s not your call,” Toriel said now, not letting anything be up for debate. “You were called here to assist, to help read Nova’s soul color, but nothing more. The school and the magical children are my area of expertise, Sans. You can make no decisions on that topic.”

Nova was watching Sans almost as intensely as Sans was watching her. There was something in Nova’s eyes that seemed to almost flicker, growing slightly wider and darker for a split second, and you saw how Sans clenched his jaw just minimally in response to it.

“it is dangerous.”

“It won’t be when you get help, my dear,” Toriel said to Nova. “We will help you with anything you need.”

“Really?” Nova asked.

“no.”

“Sans, this is not your call,” Toriel said.

“You know what bone boy? I’m getting really tired of your input,” Nova said, and clenched her fists at her side.

Something changed in the air, a familiar flicker and then Sans was gone from the room just as quickly as he had arrived.

“He left?” Toriel asked, a little surprised but more so at the timing than anything. It wasn’t like Sans to leave right as someone taunted him. Still, he had a history of running away from discussions that he didn’t want to have, or when he wasn't getting his point through.

He had been losing this one anyway. You could see that on both Frisk and Toriel’s faces. They were both a little too determined for their own good sometimes.

Frisk signed that Nova shouldn’t bother with Sans being ominous and weird and that he was just stressed lately. You hesitantly told Nova what they had said but you used a bit kinder words to describe that Sans was going through something. Frisk didn’t react to the deliberate change this time.

“Should we get you settled?” Toriel asked. “There are room in the dorm amongst the oldest kids at the school. You’ll have to share a common area, but you will have your own room.”

“My own room?” Nova asked, looking overwhelmed with joy. “Really?! Wait, what will it cost? I don’t have any-”

“It does not cost a thing,” Toriel said kindly. “The housing and food are sponsored by the school. Everything is paid for.”

Nova looked about ready to cry and she did not look like the cocky kid that had come charging through the doors. She started thanking you all, profusely, and you were having a lot of trouble reading her right. It almost seemed like she switched between different aspects of her personality from one moment to the next.

Frisk didn’t seem to have such reservations, looping their arms under Nova’s, and happily tugging them along. Toriel bid you goodbye with a wave and a smile as she walked out after Nova and Frisk.

The moment the door had closed, Sans popped back into existence.

“Sans?” you asked surprised. You had thought he might have stormed off to mope, but something in his expression made you feel a sense of dread in the pit of your stomach. He looked haunted.

“Sans,” you tried again, stepping close enough to shake him by the shoulders now. “What happened? Where did you go?”

“void,” Sans choked out and it sounded like he barely had any voice left.

You pulled him into your arms, his soul and your soul as close as they could be to each other as you were chest to chest. You knew he used your soul to calm down after nightmares. He couldn’t have been having a nightmare because you knew he wouldn’t have gone away to just nap and then come shortcutting back into this place. But he looked like he had just woken from a nightmare all the same.

“Sans, you’re worrying me,” you said, squeezing him tighter.

“i’m not the one you should be worried about,” he said against your chest, sounding a little more back to normal.

Your hands went to his skull, pulling him back gently so that you could look him in the eyes.

“What are you talking about?”

“that kid,” Sans said, spitting out the word with none of the affection as when he used it to describe Frisk, “just sent me into a pocket of the void.”

“What?” you asked, instantly worried. Your arms went to Sans’ shoulders, squeezing him to make sure he was real and solid in your arms. “How can someone do that?”

“i don’t know,” Sans gridded out.

“What does it mean?” you asked, once again hating that Sans had never wanted to let you in on how the void worked. You felt like you were grasping blindly for understanding right now.

He didn’t look like he particularly wanted to talk about any of this but you made it very clear with your eyes that wasn’t getting out of this.

“the void is vast and endless but there are pockets in it. little spaces where you’re not just aimlessly floating around, little touchstones. you’ve actually been to one if my theory is correct.”

“Me?”

“yeah, when you helped boost frisk to get them to be able to reset. you went into a pocket of the void. you are safe from disintegrating in them. that freaky new kid tossed me right out of reality and into one of them.”

Then that was why Sans had left so abruptly. You suddenly felt bad that you hadn’t been more worried.

“What does that mean?”

“it means that the kid is hella dangerous. though… i doubt it could throw anyone else into the void just like that. i’m too susceptible to it.”

“Are you saying that it could have been an accident?” you asked, confused.

“no. it was no accident. it was very much on purpose. they wanted me gone.”

“Oh, Nova uses she/her pronouns,” you told Sans.

“oh, rest assured i wasn’t talking about the new kid. not alone. i wasn’t talking about her at all. i was talking about chara.”

“Chara?” you asked, very freaking confused. You felt like you had missed out on an important history lesson. It was almost even more frustrating because it hadn’t been because you hadn’t wanted to be there, you had just never been allowed into the class by the teacher. But you remembered your conversation with Alphys this morning and how she had been more worried about Chara rather than Gaster.

“it’s a long story.”

“If you’re this worried, then clearly it’s a long story that I need to hear,” you said, defensively.

“i don’t want you involved, doe.”

“I don’t care!” you yelled. “I don’t care, Sans. I am involved. With the monster equality fight. With all of the magic shit that goes down around here. And I’m involved with you. Why do you insist on shutting me out?”

“because it’s ugly history,” Sans said and he tried to hide from you but you were still holding him by the shoulders. He was not going anywhere unless he wanted to use force to remove you. You knew he would never do that.

“I can handle ugly.”

“i know, you’re dating me,” Sans said, turning to humor and self-deprecation when he was put on the spot and showing vulnerability.

“I love your jokes,” you said, voice turning soft and gentle. “But not like that. Don’t speak like that about yourself.”

Sans leaned forward until his forehead was pressed in just under your chin, right against your chest.

“i don’t deserve you.”

“Stop, Sans. I will not be distracted. You have to actually talk to me about all this. Who is Chara? What’s up with the void? Why were you so hostile to Nova? What do you know?”

“i don’t know anything,” he spoke against your chest. “i only have hunches and a horrible sense of foreboding. that new kid is at the heart of everything. they need to die as soon as possible.”

You knew Sans had killed before, in the war and Underground too. But he had promised you that he had never taken an innocent life. Hearing him make such a quick snap decision about the fate of that scared teenager who had been in the room not ten minutes ago, startled something in you. It frightened you, and it had been years and years since you’d been frightened near Sans.

“We are not killing a child, Sans. She’s a lost and scared child, who has come here for help.”

“it’s a trick. all of this is an elaborate trick. a puppet master pulling strings,” Sans said ominously.

You hated when Sans talked in riddles. He was always doing it on purpose. It had lessened as the two of you had grown closer. He had opened up more, but when he was stressed, it was like he reverted. He spoke as if it was him against the world. Probably because it had been like that for a long time in his life. He had only had himself to count on and Papyrus to take care of on top of that. It had left traces that still showed now and again, even when he had so many loving people around him.

You made an executive decision.

“We’re going to go to Grillby’s, pick up take-out and then we’re going back home and you’re not leaving until you’ve told me everything.”

“but…”

“Everything,” you repeated.

Sans let out a sigh of defeat and nodded.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And so we have a proper introduction for one of my original characters, Nova! She'll play a key role in this fic moving forward and I lowkey adore her, even if no one should trust her. And little Mewlie! She's adorable and I love her with my whole heart too. And ahh! I'd love to hear your theories about Nova, Chara, the void, anything really. I'm having a lot of fun with the world building in this one. I won't have time to reply to comments just yet but I will read them and likely smile a lot if you leave one.
> 
> Next update should hopefully be on next Wednesday around 8 PM (but it's not finished yet, so ahh!).
> 
> I'm still doing PEDIA and posting and writing lots, so check out my writing tumblr @secretlywritingstories or my profile for more.


	3. An Old Foe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sans doesn't like the idea of having Nova enrol with the other magical children but there is little that any of you can do without proof. Instead, you all try to take the precautions necessary to protect everyone but the danger turns out to be much more powerful that you could imagine.

You had never seen Sans eat fries that slowly. Of course, they were still smothered in ketchup but it was like he was making a spectacle of eating just one fry at a time. It was a stark contrast from when you’d seen him shove almost an entire carton of fries into his maw one time. You knew he was just trying to delay the inevitable, but you didn’t mind giving him the time he would need before talking about this thing.

Sans was a stubborn skeleton but you had a stubborn streak just as strong.

Even if you might have leaned over to pluck from his fries after you’d finished your own food. They had grown soggy because of the ketchup but Sans always seemed to like that.

When there was only a couple of fries left, Sans started at them intensely.

“i’m not going to wiggle out of this one, am i?”

“Nope,” you said, unapologetically.

“you know i’m just trying to protect you, right?”

“Ignorance is not protection, Sans. You know that as well, when you aren’t too wrapped up in your own skull.”

“nice one,” Sans said, tapping his knuckles against his skull in a low rhythm. It was the only sound that filled your living room.

“Sans,” you said imploringly.

“are you mad at me?”

It wasn’t the question you had been expecting, not at all.

“Why would you think that?”

Sans scoffed. “i’ve seen that look on your face before. you’re worried about me, about what i might do. i hate that look on your face. haven’t seen it in so long.”

You contemplated brushing it off, reassuring him that you weren’t worried, but it wouldn’t be genuine. You were worried that Sans could even suggest killing a teenager. It was a little charring to hear him talk about something like that, but you knew him well. You knew he would have his reasons, probably legitimate reasons, for being worried, which was why you wanted him to stop keeping things to himself.

You pulled the plate with the last couple of fries out of Sans’ lap and placed it on the coffee table, before shuffling closer to him on the sofa. You took his hands in yours, and held onto them gently. You traced your fingertips over his knuckles, their texture and bumps familiar to you by now. You’d been holding his hands for five years now.

“how can you just do that?”

“What?”

“i can feel your soul, and you’re… radiating care and love right now. why aren’t you mad? i want you to be mad.”

You narrowed your eyes at him.

“You only want me to be mad because it would get you out of this conversation, which is exactly why I’m keeping a level head until I have heard you out. And Sans?”

“hmm?”

“I’m on your side, as a default, I’m on your side. Not through everything, I have my limits and coldblooded murder is definitely one of them, but you have to make me understand.”

You felt like you’d repeated yourself too much, from the lap until now, but you could see that every word was a crack in Sans’ armor and now you got to see how the last line of defense crumbled.

Sans moved, shifting until he could lean into your space, fitting between your legs and resting his face on your chest. His hands carefully let go of yours and instead snuck around to hold around your waist. Your own hands went to his spine, resting there gently.

“chara was the first fallen human,” Sans started. “they were before my time, but i still got to meet them. too many times. you see, when chara fell into the underground, it was a different time. monsters still remembered that humans had locked and sealed us inside of the mountain but generations had already come and gone. when a human child fell into our new home, monsters were mostly confused. they took the child to the king and queen, to asgore and toriel. and you know tori, she adopted the child, of course. chara ended up growing up alongside their own child asriel. best of pals by the stories, but… chara was not a good person.”

Sans paused for a beat and snuggled closer into your warmth. You knew he was using this position to spare himself from looking into your eyes as he told the story, but also because the close proximity to your soul would work well to calm him.

“How so?” you asked quietly.

“chara was a kid with magic. i think they might even have been drawn to the underground because of it. but it is one thing to have an inclination towards magic, it is another thing to be dumped into a place overflowing it. chara’s magic grew strong, powerful. power corrupts so easily. chara… was cruel and they wanted to hurt humanity. i do not know why but my guess would be that they were shunned from being different. for being magic. the urge was so strong that they still wanted to do so when they lay dying. they convinced their brother that they just wanted to see their old village for a last time. a lie. even so, asriel absorbed their soul and took them to the surface.”

“Through the barrier?” you asked, surprised. You hadn’t thought that anyone had gone through the barrier until Frisk had come along and freed all of them.

“yes,” Sans confirmed. “but it’s a tragedy. asriel absorbed chara’s soul to do it, taking their body up to their village. the humans… did not react kindly. asriel was mortally wounded by them and died as soon as they made it back to the underground. that kind of violent death, with two souls in one body… it does something, on top of chara’s powerful magic energy. both asriel and chara were shattered across the timeline. asriel managed to latch onto a patch of flowers, trapping himself into one of them, but chara went into…”

“The void,” you guessed, with a morbid sense of foreboding.

“exactly. chara was vengeful. not just towards humans anymore, but monsters too. they just wanted more power.”

“How does Frisk play into this?” you asked.

“frisk… well, there were other fallen children after chara, but now asgore was mourning the loss of his two children, at the hand of humans. he decided the fallen humans were to be killed, their souls taken and stored until we could break through the barrier,” Sans said and there was a kind of somber in his voice that startled you a little.

Almost as much as his words. You could not imagine any monster excusing the murder of children, even if it was to free their entire species. Let alone, you couldn’t imagine it from someone who was Toriel’s husband. You had often wondered about him, why no one seemed to talk much about him, even when he had been such a central part to the monster race.

“Children?” you asked timidly.

Sans hummed in confirmation. “yeah, it’s… it is not always good, we are not always good either. frisk was the eight child overall, but by far the most powerful since chara. and when frisk started playing with the timeline, when they started to see what would happen if they killed someone… it activated chara somehow. it made chara strong enough to latch onto frisk. like possession or something. it was… in the bad timeline, it was chara driving and pushing frisk. an evil whisper in their ear. they just wanted frisk to kill everyone and escape the underground themselves, with chara hitching a ride. i’m sure chara had plans for what frisk should do to humanity when they made it to that as well.”

You took a moment to consider Sans’ words and you let your hands run up and down his spine as you did it. Your touch was featherlight, knowing Sans had always been a little sensitive around his spine. He didn’t really let anyone get close to it, but you weren’t anyone, and it had been years since you hadn’t been allowed to touch him everywhere.

Sans’ magic summed within his bones, just like you could feel the warmth from his ribcage where it was pressed into your stomach.

“It’s a lot,” you admitted. “And from a child?”

“chara isn’t a child anymore. hasn’t been for a very long time. time works differently in the void but they are old now. much older than many get to be. and much more powerful.”

“And you think that they are somehow possessing Nova now? Like they did with Frisk? Why? Because of Nova’s magic?”

“a gut feeling.”

“You don’t have a gut,” you argued, wanting to lighten the mood just a little. You poked him in the ribs and he wiggled a little before letting out a grunt.

“leave the bad jokes to me, sweetheart,” Sans said but he sounded fond.

“Admit, it was a good one,” you said with a smile. Your hands kept climbing up and down his spine.

If Sans was right in his suspicions, then you were all in serious trouble. Chara sounded dangerous, very dangerous if they could manage to corrupt and overtake someone like Frisk. It was still a little jarring to imagine Frisk going on a killing rampage, murdering all the monsters that were their friends and family.

It just showed that nothing was ever certain in life, anyone had the capabilities to be bad.

But that also meant that everyone had the capabilities to be good as well. You latched onto that aspect hopefully.

“we have to do something, doe.”

“I know,” you said. “But, Sans, you aren’t sure, are you? Like absolutely certain that this is the work of Chara?”

There was a weighted moment of silence.

“you can never be sure of anything until it happens. but… i can stand to watch that happen.”

“But if you’re wrong… hell, even if you are right, what about Nova?”

“what about her?”

“Isn’t she just a magical kid, just like Frisk was? Even if Chara is somehow influencing her, then isn’t it our job to save her instead? Separate them somehow?”

“i wouldn’t even know how to begin with that.”

“How did Frisk do it?”

“i don’t know.”

It was a shame that you couldn’t talk to Frisk about it. Frisk had no memory of the other timelines they had created while being trapped Underground. There had only been one instance where they had remembered but that was when you had helped them reach their powers of time manipulation. You had been thrown into a weird blacked out space, almost floating in nothingness. Frisk had remembered then, and it was the reason that they hadn’t reset the timeline to before the war. They had remembered the carnage and they had sworn off time manipulation, just like Sans had originally made them promise when they emerged from the Underground.

But it also meant that Frisk wouldn’t be able to remember anything that had happened with Chara.

“We’re stuck, aren’t we?”

“kinda.”

“Do you really think Nova threw you into that void pocket on purpose?” you asked.

Sans shivered in your arms.

“someone definitely threw me into it on purpose. it’s probably not the girl. bet’s on chara.”

“Okay,” you said, because while it was an utterly terrifying thought

“but…”

“What?” you asked, because there was something loaded in just that one word.

“ it… i… when they tossed me, i felt something else. something familiar. and i’m pretty sure i indirectly changed my direction in the void, running from it. i didn’t land in the pocket that they were trying to send me to.”

“Sans, what does that mean?”

“i’m not sure nova, chara, whoever, wanted me to come back out of the void in one piece.”

That one sentence terrified you to your core. You were not sure what to do, other than to hold the skeleton closer in your arms. Sans was always busy worrying about everyone else but you couldn’t help by worry about him. Even though these years of being together, Sans still didn’t act like he deserved love sometimes. You really wanted to prove him wrong once more.

You would be devastated if he was lost, as would Papyrus, and all of your friends.

To think that he might have come close, and you hadn’t even realized the severity of it, chilled and terrified you. You knew you were the one who had told Sans to tell you everything but right now you weren’t sure you could handle hearing anything more.

“We’ll keep an eye on Nova, okay?” you promised. “If you’re right, we’ll watch her closely. We’ll warn Toriel and the other teachers to be careful.”

“okay,” Sans agreed but he didn’t sound optimistic.

He didn’t sound like he thought it would be enough. You didn’t like his tone of voice. It was a dangerous one. A very dangerous one.

“Sans, you must promise me not to do something rash,” you said gripping onto him a little tighter. “You have never spilled innocent blood. You cannot start now.”

Sans let out a sigh. He liked sighing, even if he didn’t have lungs. He had once confessed to you that that he had learned the motion by himself, because sometimes a situation just called for a deep sigh. You hated that he was in those situations often enough to think he would need to learn something like that.

“i won’t,” Sans said, after his sigh had been fully exhaled. “i know you enjoy giving me challenges of not using my powers to their fullest.”

It was a dig at something that happened years ago. Something that had nearly cost Sans’ his life back at the POCAM headquarters. You stiffened as all the horrible memories and the guilt came back.

“That’s not fair,” you said in a quiet voice.

“sorry,” Sans muttered, pulling you tighter to him, so you could better feel his soul. It felt like he was genuinely sorry. “i didn’t… it came out wrong. i don’t blame you for that, i never blamed you for that.”

“I did, I blamed me,” you said, and you had. You had been nearly devastated when Sans keeping his promise to you of no casualties had nearly resulted in his own loss at life. You had fought so hard to make sure you both made it out of there safely.

“i know, but you shouldn’t.”

“It doesn’t work like that,” you reminded him.

“i know that too,” he said and let out a deep chuckle against your skin. You liked when he chuckled when he was close to you like this, it made you feel the vibrations of his laughter. “but i truly to not blame you, in fact… i needed it. i still need it. i need you to hold me responsible, to stop me from going too far. i… we, we only have this one shot up here. if i do something horrendous, i do not get a do over. i can’t let myself be cold and harsh.”

You hadn’t expected to hear that from him, not at all and you moved back a little and nudged his shoulder, asking him to lift his head. You knew he would probably rather stay hiding in your skin but you needed to look him in the eye sockets right now. You needed to see his expression that would accompany those words.

It was like a burning desire within you that you couldn’t control.

Sans let out a grumble of protest but he lifted his skull and met your eyes all the same. Your friends often teased you that Sans was completely whipped and that he would do anything for you. You saw that in his eyes now.

“Do you mean it?”

“yes,” he said, sincerely. “i… i don’t like vengeful, murderous sans. i don’t want to be that. never. but i just, i get so scared. terrified. i don’t know how else to protect everyone.”

You reached up to trace his cheekbones with his fingertips, touch purposely as gentle as you could make it. Sans always melted when you touched him like that. You hoped that the softness would make up a little for the years of harshness that he had been made to endure.

“We’ll find a way. We’ll find a way to keep them all safe,” you promised him. In reality, both of you knew you couldn’t promise something like that, you wouldn’t be able to guarantee it, but you still needed to say it.

And you trusted that your words would be right, because you knew how hard both you and Sans would work to make them true.

“see, this is what i mean,” Sans said, reaching out to cup your cheek.

“What?” you whispered.

“you make me believe that there’s always another way, even when i can’t see one. you work until you create one.”

You leaned forward to kiss him then, just as gentle as you had touched him. It was familiar through the years of being together, and you could not imagine what it was like kissing someone who wasn’t Sans. He nipped playfully at your lips with his teeth, just a gentle nip, even in the teasing.

You knew it was an apology. For being distant, for not telling the truth, for not including you in his worries.

A smile bloomed on your face and you leaned back in to kiss him once more, while your hands found their way into his ribcage, close to his soul and he almost hummed in contentment in your arms.

You both accidentally fell asleep on the sofa that night, lying tangled up in each other. When you woke the following morning, you saw that your duvet had somehow managed to find its way down and been tugged in around you.

You knew instantly it was Papyrus, even before you spotted the adorable note scribbled next to a glass of water on the coffee table.

_YOU WILL GET COLD, SILLY FAMILY – YOU ARE LUCKY TO HAVE THE GREAT PAPYRUS LOOKING AFTER YOU_

You read the note a couple of times before Sans jostled awake. He saw something in your hand and turned his head to read along.

“pap’s a good one,” he said with a yawn.

And he was. It was not the first time he had looked after you and Sans or left notes. He was quite fond of his notes. Sans usually added notes of his own to Papyrus’ notes and they would have a whole conversation back and forth in note form.

But still one word in Papyrus’ note got your heart feeling particularly full. Family. He used it quite a lot, calling you family or his sister-in-law, despite you and Sans not being married or mated. He had refused to give up calling you that, because he had thought that the word was so cool and he said that he had always wanted a sister. You hadn’t been able to pry it from him since then.

He was happy to have gotten another family member in you.

But you knew he couldn’t be as happy as you were in having gained Sans and Papyrus as family members. You had been without a family for years before meeting them, and it had been a slow kind of torture but now, things were okay. You had been taught that you could always find more family members if only you were willing to keep your soul open and look in unusual places.

“How did you sleep?” you asked, because you had been out like a rock yourself.

“in bits and pieces,” Sans confessed, “i was awake when pap came home and put the duvet over us, but i pretended to be asleep.”

“Of course, you did,” you said fondly. “I’m sorry you couldn’t get a full night’s sleep.”

Sans shrugged like it didn’t matter, which was possibly the most heartbreaking of all. He didn’t seem to mind that this had become his new reality.

“naps in close successions are good, and i stayed with you. it helps… listening to your breathing and soul when i’m uneasy,” Sans confessed, almost shyly, even if he probably knew that you would love to hear that.

You moved your hand to the back of his head, tracing light patterns into the bone under your fingers.

“That’s good to know, because you also put my soul at ease,” you said.

You said the phrase often now, even if you had accidentally used it without knowing all the implications when you had first said it years ago. Now it was an acknowledgment of yours and Sans’ bond, of your choice to be together and to love each other.

Breakfast was another quiet affair but afterwards both of you had gone down to the basement laboratory to plan how to deal with Nova. You both agreed that something should be done, an extra type of awareness, even if you still could mostly see a scared teenager whenever you thought of Nova. You knew it would be impossible to involve Toriel in these extra precautions. 

Not only because she had looked about ready to adopt Nova, just like she did with all the other magical children. But if you were to properly warn her about Sans’ suspicions, it would mean telling her about Chara’s potential involvement.

As Chara had been one of her actually adopted children, Sans said that it was a bad idea. Period. Toriel was blind when it came to her lost family members and Sans wasn’t sure how they could even begin to convince her that the human child she had lost all those years ago now could be a malicious entity controlling humans from beyond the void.

Phrased like that, you hadn’t wanted to tell Toriel either but your heart had ached for her.

Still, you felt like it was your responsibility to have someone in the classes to watch out if Nova might be up to something, or she might even become a threat to the other children. You had to turn to the Royal Guard for help.

Undyne had seemed less keen on the idea of giving one of her guards daily to stay with the magical children, but she had stopped putting up a fight when Alphys had agreed with you and Sans as well. You were pretty sure that Alphys wasn’t even sure why you were asking but her and Sans had just shared a look and it was like she had understood. Those two had been working together for a long time and you knew they trusted each other’s judgement.

A whole week passed without any incidences, and according to both Frisk and Toriel, Nova was doing excellent. She has a quite natural grasp of the magic exercises that neither Toriel nor the other monsters, who helped out at the school, had ever seen. She got on famously with Frisk and she had already tried to start learning sign language to be able to communicate with them.

It was a class they also taught at the school and surprisingly every single student had wanted to learn how to communicate with their hands. You knew it was probably because of Frisk being so charismatic and interesting that they just wanted to be included in conversations with them without having to deal with an interpreter in between. Once more, it gave you hope for the future to see such lovely and compassionate children and teenagers.

So far, that description of the students had seemed to include Nova. She had not done anything out of the ordinary, even if she seemed to turn a little cold and be on edge whenever Sans came around. None of you had managed to find out if it was actually because she had tried to make him get permanently lost in the void, or if she could just feel the hostility radiating off Sans. Sans was understandably on edge around her and his white pin pricks were usually put away to give him his eerie aura.

Another week passed and still nothing happened. Frisk was getting even closer to Nova, stopping by the class or the dorms afterwards more than they used to do before. Mont had become a little jealous at Frisk suddenly spending so much time with a new friend, so they had started to tag along as well.

It had only meant that the kids got even more excited at seeing a monster closer to themselves in age. They were used to being mostly surrounded by older monsters, the one helping them learn their power, but after seeing the interest in Mont’s visits everyone seemed to realize that it was silly that the magical children actually weren’t introduced to more monsters, especially the monster children.

You were still all on a learning curve, but you thought that mixing them together was an excellent idea and it was a shame that you hadn’t thought of it sooner. However, given the worries about Nova, it didn’t feel like it was the most opportune moment to do so.

But the wheels were in motion and there was not much any of you could do about it now.

Another week passed without incident and you would yourself slowly starting to relax. Maybe it had just been a mistake, a bad hunch from Sans. Nova hadn’t even used any void adjacent magic in the classroom. Granted, they hadn’t tried to train that type of magic either but it was still odd that she didn’t slip into it by accident as she was still learning to control her magic.

Sans wasn’t sleeping well, even if he had stopped hiding it from you as much. He’d stay in the bed most nights now, and if he woke up in the middle of the night, he’d just cuddle up close to you. Just exist next to you in the darkness of the bedroom and listen to your breathing and to your soul.

You were glad that you could be a comfort for him but you wanted more than anything else that he would be able to get proper rest.

He had said that he couldn’t, not as long as the void still felt so unstable whenever he made a shortcut through it. It didn’t feel like it would collapse, not yet, but Sans was clearly worried and he said that it had gotten increasingly worse in the last three weeks since Nova had arrived.

He now refused to take anyone along with him on shortcuts, even if it had made quite a lot of your friends confused. He continued to research the void, but he seemed to just hit one dead end after another.

You were busy with the New New Home University hosting one of its first conferences. A lot of professors from universities across the country had been invited to participate in the conference where your scientists would talk about some of the new breakthroughs using monster food to heal illnesses. The research was almost ready to become published and now you needed other experts to look it over. It was exciting but it was also a new thing that a lot of people were cautious about.

You had more than enough on your plate trying to manage all of that.

It had been another early evening, with you once again trying to work out the logistics of so many people gathered in one place for the conference when there was a knock on the front door. Papyrus came twirling out from the kitchen where he was in the process of cooking diner, announcing that he’d answer the door.

“WHO IS IT?” Papyrus asked through the door playfully.

From the forceful knocks alone, you knew it was definitely Undyne. She had been the cause of you have to replace the hinges on the front door more than once. She did not know what restraint meant. She knocked with fiery passion and the poor wooden door could only take so much before is gave after.

You had expected Undyne’s gruff voice complaining that Papyrus just wasn’t opening the door, but then you heard a much milder voice.

“It is me!”

“AHH. I THINK I AM FAINTING, WHO IS THE OWNER OF THAT LOVELY VOICE. SURELY A PRINCESS!”

A childish giggle sounded through the door.

“Uncle Papy! It’s me, Mewlie!” she cried happily through the door.

Papyrus yanked it open with a very dramatic flair.

“BUT YOU SEE, I WAS RIGHT. YOU ARE A PRINCESSS,” Papyrus said, picking up Mewlie like she weighed nothing and spinning her around in the air playfully.

She continued to giggle, cheeks scrunched up and chubby claws holding onto Papyrus’ shoulder blade.

You let your eyes drift from Papyrus and Mewlie to Undyne who was lingering in the doorway. Motherhood looked good on her too. She had mellowed out a little in some aspects, such as giving her love more freely, but she had also gotten so much fierier and more protective. She must have sensed you turn your head, because she turned her attention right at you.

It was almost easy to forget that she was blind when she navigated the world so expertly.

“Thank you for babysitting tonight,” she told you, just loud enough to be heard over Mewlie’s loud giggles.

“Babysitting?” you asked confused. You didn’t know anything about babysitting.

“Yeah? Pap said that him, you and Sans would be happy to babysit tonight? Alphys and I have our anniversary dinner tonight.”

You felt like a bad friend since you hadn’t realized that it was their anniversary tonight. You should have known that. Sure, you’d been wrapped up in this Nova situation and the upcoming conference but it still wasn’t really a proper excuse.

Even so, you were sure that you hadn’t agreed to any babysitting.

“WE’RE GOING TO HAVE SUCH A FUN NIGHT,” Papyrus said. “I MADE SPAGHETTI!”

Undyne made a face in your direction.

“You and Sans will be here to watch out for her, right?” she not so subtly whispered, but Papyrus was thankfully too occupied with the giggling monster in his arms to pay her any attention.

You looked down at your notes and all the work you still had left to be done. Nothing was so critical that it needed to be done by tomorrow morning but it was all work that did need to be sorted soon.

“A BREAK WILL BE GOOD FOR YOU,” Papyrus said, suddenly addressing you as he positioned Mewlie on his hip. “ YOU AND SANS.”

You couldn’t stop the smile on your face. Of course, Papyrus had noticed that you and Sans were up to something and working harder than usual. He was very shy about the way he was observant but it was always a mistake to underestimate him.

You started to gather the notes in front of you.

“We’ll have a good night,” you said to Mewlie, Papyrus and Undyne.

Undyne thanked you before she was running out of the door, retreating just as quickly as she had arrived. Mewlie demanded a hug from you too, and you exchanged a really long one before Papyrus took her by the hand and led her back out to the kitchen with him. It was a disaster waiting to happen, and you should probably be there to oversee it, so the whole place didn’t get covered in sugar again.

But first, you went down to get Sans.

“Sans?” you called out, as you descended the steps.

As you had expected, he was bent over his desk in a position that couldn’t be good for his spine. He hummed but didn’t look up from your papers as you approached. You walked up to put a hand on his spine and apply light pressure.

“hey, okay, i get it,” Sans said but he straightened up which was what you had been trying to accomplish more than just getting his attention. “what’s up?”

“Mewlie is upstairs.”

“okay?”

“We’re babysitting.”

“what? no, we’re not.”

“Pap said that we were and frankly you and I both know we can’t leave him alone with Mewlie or they will get up to all sorts of trouble.”

“can’t you just-”

“And I won’t just do it alone,” you said interrupting Sans and what he had been trying to say. He pulled a face. “Come on. We’ve both been working hard lately. We are allowed one evening away from work. Besides Mewlie is cute and Papyrus misses hanging out with us. You should see how excited he sounded to hear that we would all be together for tonight.”

“only for you and pap,” Sans said, shaking his skull but still getting up from his seat. He put his feet back into his old worn slippers and walked up the stairs.

As soon as Mewlie spotted him, she jumped down the counter that Papyrus had put her on. It was quite a big drop for someone so small and your heart jumped in worry but Mewlie landed elegantly and her small legs carried her onwards as she stumbled forward until she was buried her face in Sans’ hip.

“hey kid,” Sans said and there was that tone he only ever got out around children, particularly the younger ones. He patted Mewile on the back of the head so gently.

“Uncle Sansy!” Mewlie exclaimed happily tilting her head back to look up at him. “Do the thing!”

It was very unspecific but still Sans’ grin widened and you realized that he must know exactly what she mean.

“step back, sprout,” Sans said, nudging he back gently.

Papyrus stepped out of the kitchen and lingered in the doorway.

“SANS, ARE YOU ABOUT TO MESS UP THE HOUSE AGAIN?”

Sans shrugged but he looked a little mischievous.

“what the kid wants, the kid gets,” he said and then his left eye went blue. You were confused until you saw that all of the furniture in the living room started to levitate. Mewlie happily ran to the centre of the room and started to wave around her tiny arms. Sans lifted just a finger and spun it in circles and the furniture started to circle around her.

You stepped back to give them space and ended up right next to Papyrus.

“SANS YOU BETTER REMEMBER WHERE EVERYTHING GOES AGAIN,” Papyrus complained, but it was that good-natured complaining that he always did to and about his brother. It was not serious.

“you’re a hypocrite, pap. you used to love this too,” Sans said, looking like he was exerting no energy even if it was quite the feat of magic that you saw in front of you.

“Doey! Papy! Look I’m doing magic!” Mewlie said happily and you both politely applauded her.

She started to run from one side of the room to the other and the furniture dutifully followed her. You thought that it was a good thing that Alphys wasn’t here because she would definitely have been anxious about so many heavy things hovering in the air over her child. Undyne would have joined in, or maybe seen it as a game to bat away the furniture. It was probably a good thing that neither of them was here at the moment.

The game went on for another ten minutes until Mewlie had tired of it and dramatically dropped her arms and the furniture settled around her in a circle.

“SANS, THAT IS NOW HOW IT WAS STANDING,” Papyrus complained.

“don’t look at me, pap, it’s mewlie that’s the magic mastermind here,” Sans said, grinning.

“Oh, I will fix, Papy!” Mewlie said and started to push the sofa. It did not move under her tiny hands.

Papyrus looked at Sans and suddenly the sofa moved under her hands again. You offered to help rearrange things too and whenever you or Mewlie came near one of the heavy pieces of furniture they started to just move under your hands.

“And now we’ve cleaned it all up again,” you said to Mewlie when everything was in place. “That’s very important. You should clean up after your own messes. It’s something your uncle Sansy could learn from.”

“hey,” Sans protested weakly from where he had taken to lounging on the stairs to be out of the way. “not fair.”

“SHE IS RIGHT, SANS. YOU LAZY SACK OF BONES!” Papyrus called from the kitchen.

Mewlie started giggling again.

Dinner was not a quiet affair. Papyrus had insisted on making spaghetti with meat balls and while he was a decent cook by now, sometimes things still went amiss in the kitchen. About every tenth time the pasta ended up burned, as it seemed Undyne’s early cooking lessons was still stored deeply within his mind. You were glad this wasn’t one such time.

Mewlie copied Sans and absolutely smothered the whole thing in ketchup much to Papyrus’ dismay.

“NOT TWO OF THEM,” he had complained loudly and Mewlie had just giggled.

After dinner, she ran up to Sans once more to demand attention and play and you couldn’t quite stop smiling at the sight. Children had always liked him, even if he had once admitted to you that it wasn’t something he could understand when he was such a scary monster.

He didn’t look very much like a scary monster sat cross-legged on the floor with Mewlie and having her guess the location of a biscuit under three different cups that he shuffled around with his magic. He looked very adorable.

Your thoughts must have showed on your face because Papyrus came to sit down next to you on the sofa, and hummed rather loudly.

“HE IS GOOD WITH KIDS, ISN’T HE?” Papyrus said to you and Sans glanced you and his way for a beat before turning his attention back to Mewlie.

Papyrus had never learned to speak quietly and you wondered if he thought he was actually being sneaky or if he just didn’t care about being overhead. Mewlie certainly wasn’t paying attention to anything but the cups rapidly shifting in front of her. Most of the time she seemed to get it right, but even on the occasions where she didn’t, she would just insist that they go again. She was certainly Undyne’s daughter.

“He is good with kids,” you agreed. “Very good with them. They always love him. I can relate.”

“I DON’T KNOW WHAT I WOULD HAVE DONE WITHOUT HIM GROWING UP,” Papyus said. “HE WAS THE BEST, BIG BROTHER TO EVER EXIST. HE USED TO PLAY THIS WITH ME TOO, ONLY WE USED BOWLS AND SPARE BONES INSTEAD OF CUPS AND CAKE.”

“Back in the Underground?”

“YES, BACK IN THE OLD LAB,” Papyrus said.

“Old Lab?” you asked, knowing he must probably mean the abandoned lab that Gaster had once worked in. “Why were you there?”

“IT’S WHERE WE LIVED BEFORE SANS BROKE US OUT,” Papyrus continued.

You saw Sans looking up from where he was playing with Mewlie and there as something slightly haunted about his expression. He shook his head at both you and Papyrus but you weren’t inclined to listen to him right now. Papyrus didn’t seem to mind giving you a few details about their early life that Sans had never wanted to discuss.

You wanted to respect Sans’ boundaries but it was Papyrus’ life too.

“Broke you out?” you prompted.

“YES,” Papyrus said before looking over at Sans and then back at you. “WE LIVED THERE FOR A LONG TIME. WHEN WE WERE BABY BONES. IT WAS OUR HOME. NOT AS NICE AS OUR HOUSE IN SNOWDIN. NOT AT ALL. I DON’T REMEMBER MUCH, I JUST REMEMBER SANS PICKING ME UP ONE DAY AND SAYING THAT WE WERE LEAVING AND THEN I FOUND OUT THAT THERE WAS SO MUCH MORE OUTSIDE OF OUR ROOMS.”

“mewlie, why don’t you and papyrus pick a film?” Sans said all of a sudden, cutting his game with Mewlie short. She didn’t really seem to mind since she squealed and ran over to Papyrus with the remote clutched in her claws.

It jostled Papyrus out of the story of the past and you knew that had been Sans plan all along.

“doe, come help me prepare snacks,” he said, a little coldly.

You knew you had overstepped and part of you was sorry but another part of you was frustrated with Sans still withholding information. You hadn’t really minded before but now that the void was unstable and he was worried about Gaster, it seemed like a safety hazard for you not know as much about that monster as you could. Sans still refused to talk about him. You realized that it might be incredibly hard to talk about but you had agreed not to keep secrets from each other.

Sans set over the kettle for tea, like he used to when you needed to have serious conversations.

“Don’t be mad at Papyrus,” you said, “be mad at me.”

“oh, you are the one i’m mad at. prying into our backstory right in front of me? in front of a kid?”

“Mewlie did not see anything other than her cool uncle Sans and you know that as well as I do. And I was just asking. It’s Papyrus’ story too, Sans, and don’t you think I should know it? I’ve never pushed for learning about it before but now seem like it shouldn’t be a time to have these secrets from each other. In particular if some of those secrets revolve around a monster that you’re scared might be able to come back. I’m working in the blind and you refuse to help light my way.”

Some of the fight seemed to bleed out of Sans as you talked.

“it’s just painful, yeah? and pap doesn’t even remember much.”

“So, will you tell me?” you asked, squaring him with a look.

He scratched the back of his skull. “there isn’t much to tell. you do know most of it. gaster trained me to jump through the void, from pocket to pocket until my hp was fucked. when i started to refuse to do it, he found another cluster of bones and made papyrus. said he’d train pap to do it if i didn’t. so i did it. only we could still not get through the barrier. gaster built a machine and he thought it could get him through instead. he went in but he never came out. pap and I were just left on our own. for a long time. that’s when we played that stupid game. i was just trying to make him smile.”

“Sans,” you said and walked up to him until you could hold his hands in yours. “I’m sorry.”

“not your fault, doe. we both know that. it’s just a shitty story. after i realized gaster wasn’t coming back… i broke me and pap out of our rooms in the lab and then we went into the underground. the other monsters were confused to see us but no one questioned it. we just were part of it all one day. i always… worried that gaster would come back one day. but i didn’t think it could happen when we were out of the underground.”

You moved to pull Sans into a proper hug. You felt a little bad about pushing him but at the same time, you knew this was needed more than ever. You needed to know who you might be up against and you also wanted to know so you could better comfort him.

“DOE! SANS! WE PICKED A MOVIE!”

“Hurry!”

You and Sans looked at each other for one beat longer and the kettle went off. You had always tried to help him but this was something you wasn’t sure could just be healed. He had wounds so deep and he had buried them down, refusing to acknowledge them but now he didn’t have a choice.

“we’re coming,” Sans called out, pulling out of the hug to get the tea ready, but he looked over his shoulder to catch your eye. You pulled some bags of candy out of the closet. “we’ve just got to stay determined, yeah?”

Staying determined was a class that they taught the magical children and you found yourself at such a class just a handful of days after the evening of babysitting. No one had said anything more about their tragic past and instead all of you had been forced to endure Mettaton’s newest feature film the plot of which you had found hard to follow but Mewlie loved that Mettaton’s character seemed to erupt in a storm of flowers every fifteen minutes. It had not taken much to impress her, or maybe you were the odd one out because Papyrus had seemed equally excited about the movie. Sans had pretend-napped through the whole thing.

The magical children did not seem to be as impressed when Toriel was explaining their lesson in staying determined. It was only when Frisk came in about ten minutes after Toriel’s explanation that everyone seemed to pay more attention. You were in the back of the class standing next to the Royal Guard member that was still ordered to be present. Today it was Alexander and he was pleased to see you.

You were here just in case some of the children needed a little boost of focus. You had done it last year for this class too and you had been pleased to obverse that you could help with other types of magic, not just Frisk’s. The kids with different soul colors all acted a little differently from each other in how they performed their magic. There was none quite as intense as those with determined souls and you kept an extra close eye to Nova during the class.

As Frisk opened the door several of the children erupted in applause and several of them started to sign.

“They really all love Frisk, huh?” Alexander asked you, looking at young Frisk as they came up to the front and did a bow.

“They’re hard not to love,” you said and watched as Hannah followed Frisk in.

Frisk immediately started signing and Hannah expertly picked up the interpreting.

“Hello everyone! I’m glad to be able to be here with you today,” Hannah said, interpreting for Frisk. “This is one of my favorite classes out of the whole year. Which sounds a little odd, right? It’s not really one of the cool ones, like moving fast or learning to strike or anything like that but it’s something very special. It might be because I have a determined soul but the magical aspect of determination is literally what saved my life while I was in the Underground. You will hopefully never be put in a situation like that but if you do, it is invaluable to be able to focus your magic and yourself.”

A lot of the children were looking at Frisk and Hannah with big eyes now, completely enraptured. Toriel came to the back to join you and Alexander.

“Someday, I wonder if Frisk could try to be a teacher instead of a diplomat,” she said quietly as Hannah kept interpreting for Frisk who talked excitedly about the feel of determination.

“Frisk is still so young. They have their whole life in front of them. I’m sure they will be good at whatever they decide to do,” you said. “They can command any stage and that’s a good skill in many professions.”

“They are not the only one who can do that,” Toriel said and shot you a kind smile.

“Can only determined souls stay determined?” one of the younger kids from the front row asked.

“No. It is not limited to determined souls, they are just the ones who come by it the most easily,” Hannah said, Frisk’s hands signing rapidly. “Determination is a magical energy, but it is also just a human emotion. For those of us with magic they are inherently interconnected but that does not mean that people without magic cannot have them. Take my friend Doe for example.”

At your name, you looked up. “Me?” you asked, unsure why you were suddenly the center of attention.

Frisk knew about your duality soul and shatter lines but you also knew that they wouldn’t just go blurt that out to everyone.

“Yes,” Hannah said and shot you a kind smile. Frisk started signing again and she kept speaking for them. “Doe does not have magic but she is still one of the most determined humans I know. She had been determined to make it through any struggle that has been thrown her way. I know she would call it being stubborn but at the core of it is that determination. If you are determined, nothing can stop you and that’s what we have to train today. We need to practice being determined because it will also help with your overall connect to magic. Should we get started?”

Now all the students were excited until they realized that getting started meant sitting down on the ground, legs folded under them and trying to meditate to access their soul. A bit of the excitement slipped away for most then, especially the younger kids who couldn’t sit still for long periods of time.

Nova, however, took to the exercise with utmost concentration but you had already learned that was pretty much the norm with her. She so desperately wanted to be here and she was doing everything she could to improve and learn. It was amicable and you hated that you continued to have to be on your guard around her because so far, she hadn’t shown any signs that she actually wanted to harm humans or monsters.

She had just seemed lost and looking for a place to belong.

Until mid-way through the exercise when something changed.

You had been walking around the students, checking in when they were losing focus or on the verge of losing it and as such you hadn’t kept the most focus on Nova who didn’t seem to slip out of concentration even once. Alexander kept an eye on her as he had been instructed and he was the one who noticed that something was amiss first out of all of you.

He marched up to grab the shoulders of the two children closest to Nova and pulling them back and that was the first you noticed before even seeing Nova. Then you heard Alexander speak into his wrist to the rest of the Royal Guard.

“Assistance requested at the school immediately,” you heard.

And then you noticed Nova.

Nova’s long hair was usually tied back when she was in school, but now it seemed to move with a mind of its own. The gravity point immediately around her had her hair floating around her face and she had her face bowed and obscured by the hair but everything around her felt tense.

More of the kids around her stumbled back, trying to get out of the way.

“Children,” Toriel said in a calm voice that was clearly a fake but still trying. “Please exit through the door quietly.”

“No.”

A very audible click of the lock on the door to the class room sounded.

“Affirmative,” sounded though Alexander’s communicator but that was all it got out before the frequency started to crackle and it sounded like something short circuited.

Frisk moved to walk forward, closer to Nova, even as everyone in the room had moved to stand in the opposite corner. You grabbed Frisk’s hand and shook your head. If Nova should have any chance to understanding what Frisk was saying they would have to get all up in front of their bowed face. Or they would need an interpreter.

Hannah looked a little terrified at this development and you stepped in instead.

“I’ll do it, Frisk.”

Frisk nodded and started to sign but you didn’t even get to say anything before a cold laughter sounded. It seemed to bounce off the walls and it didn’t entirely sound like it was coming from Nova but who else could be laughing like that.

“Frisk, still trying to save the day,” an unfamiliar voice said and this time it definitely came from Nova, but it didn’t sound like the teenager. She moved to stand slowly, hair still floating in the air around her. When she turned around, her eyes were wrong and the smile on her face looked demonic.

“What? Don’t you know how to greet an old pal?” not-Nova asked, eyes entirely black as they stared at Frisk.

Frisk’s hand shook but they signed all the same and you tried to find your voice.

“Who are you? And what have you done to Nova?” you interpreted for Frisk.

“Damn, Frisky, I’m hurt. I really am.”

Nova tried to take a step closer but now you stepped up and tried to block Frisk behind you. In turn Alexander stepped in front of you. Hannah and Toriel were still trying to shield all the other children behind their backs.

“Don’t take one more step,” you said, speaking your own words this time.

“If it isn’t that little pesky human?” not-Nova snarled. “Has no one ever told you not to stick your nose where it doesn’t belong? This doesn’t concern you.”

With a swipe of their arm, you felt a burst of magic hit your stomach and both you and Alexander was thrown across the room, skidding along the ground until you were slammed against the desk. Alexander took the blunt of the hit and even so he was immediately getting back up on his feet.

You had to cough first, and you tasted blood on your tongue. It didn’t stop you from getting to your feet either.

Frisk was signing angrily and with big arm movements, barely held back my Hannah who had thrown herself around Frisk’s torso to keep them from getting all up in not-Nova’s face.

You knew who it was, who it had to be, but you hadn’t been willing to believe it until you heard the answer to Frisk’s signing. Nova couldn’t understand sign language that well yet but the person currently possessing her could.

“Frisk, I really am offended that you keep asking who I am and what I want. You know who I am. We used to get up to the most fun Underground, you and I, until you would be a little chicken shit and refuse to leave on our own. You always wanted to go back. Again, and again. And then when you actually get the balls to leave, you left with all those filthy monsters.”

“Chara,” you yelled to get their attention away from Frisk.

Toriel gasped.

Chara turned her face towards you. “Finally, someone with a little bit of a brain. Though, I suppose I shouldn’t blame Frisk, should I? Timeline amnesia, isn’t it, dear Frisk? You can’t even remember everything that we did. It’s such a shame really. We dusted them all. Remember how many times we killed goat mother? We killed her the most out of all of them, I think.”

You could hear that several children were crying right now and you honestly wanted to join them. Alexander reached for his stun gun and fired it before any of you could protest. As soon as Toriel saw, she cried out but there was nothing that could stop it.

Except for Chara’s hand, it seemed.

They grabbed it by the wires and yanked Alexander forward before he even had a chance to press the button that let out the electric charge.

“That’s dirty tricks from a dirty human,” Chara said, clicking their tongue. They then proceeded to stand on Alexander’s throat and it pressing down. You knew something more had to be holding him in place, because otherwise he would have moved now. “Should you be the first to die?”

More children were crying, louder and more desperately. This was a nightmare.

“Chara,” Toriel called and her voice sounded broken. “What are you doing? This isn’t you.”

Maniacal laughter followed. “Oh, mom, I was never who you thought I was. Perfect little child? No way. I was always going to ruin you all. That had been the goal all along. It was only Asriel that was too much of a wimp to go through with it.”

“You will not speak of your brother like that,” Toriel said, openly crying now.

“He’s gone and dead. Frisk made sure of that before you all left the Underground. In this timeline, Asriel died for good.”

Toriel wailed and it broke your heart.

“chara.”

You were surprised to hear Sans’ voice but maybe you shouldn’t be. He always knew how to show up when he was needed.

“Great, the one person in your little ragtag team that can actually get in here right now,” Chara said, grinning menacingly. “How are all the furious Royal Guards outside?”

That explained why none of them had come charging in yet. Chara was doing something so that they couldn’t but Sans had managed to bypass it with a short cut.

“get off the royal guard,” Sans said, blue eye flared up and malicious energy seeping out from every pore.

“As you wish,” Chara said, stepping off Alexander’s throat only to kick him in the ribs. "Though it's bad form to let humans into the Royal Guard, do you not think?"

Toriel was openly crying now, and Frisk had run to their mother’s side and crawled into their embrace trying to be a comfort.

Alexander was on the floor barely breathing and Hannah was now trying to reassure the children that it was all going to be okay. It didn’t feel like it was going to be okay, not at all. You could read on Sans’ expression that he felt the same.

“So we meet again, Sans. You know you were always my favorite, it’s much more fun to repeatedly torture someone who is aware of the past torture. It gets boring otherwise. And you know how much I hate boredom.”

“why have you come?” Sans asked.

Chara giggled and it was a weird laugh, from Nova’s body.

“I just told you, I don’t take well to being bored. The void is very boring and the Underground has been mostly empty since you all left and Frisk stopped trying to use their powers. Thank you for that, by the way. Really put a damper on my mood.”

“you’re welcome,” Sans bit out. “and now you need to leave, before i make you.”

“Aw, that’s cute. You think you can actually do that,” Chara said and they looked way too pleased. “Don’t you remember how this usually goes? No matter how hard you try, I’m the more determined one. I’ll win in the end.”

“try me,” Sans growled out.

“No, not in the mood today,” Chara said and you were hit with a strange sense of foreboding. Something in their air shifted and you could feel that same rush of cold air that had happened in your office a couple of days before Nova had arrived. “You see, this kid here is possible even more powerful than Frisky. She can jump through the void, but she can also push people into it... or take people out of it.”

The overhead light exploded and the temperature dropped even further. The sounds of muffled crying was still too audible but Sans didn’t do anything even in the darkness. You rushed to his side.

“Sans?”

“i… i can’t move.”

You looked back to Chara again and it was a terrifying sight, not only the menacing grin that looked wrong on Nova’s sweet face but also because what was happening next to their hand. The room was dark now thanks to the killed lights but it was nothing compared to the darkness forming in the middle of the room.

It was the blackest black you had ever seen and you felt like just looking at it was enough to freeze you with terror. Sans had gone ramrod stiff in your grip and you both just watched in horror. You knew what he was expecting and you were fearing the exact same thing but you still tried to pray that it would be something else.

Anyone else.

The prayers were not answered.

W. D. Gaster stepped out in all his terrifyingly melted glory. You had never seen Gaster before or even heard descriptions of him but you were not in doubt for even a second, not when you heard Sans let out a terrified whimper. He was someone who could face any challenge without being scared but the monster who stepped out of the void made his bones tremble.

“Hello Sans.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to leave it on yet another cliffhanger but the chapter was already 10k, so please forgive me for that. At least you all got to see Chara a bit in action. Damn I'm so excited to play around with both of those two characters in this story, even if it also means lots and lots of angst obviously. However, if you need it, here's a reminder that I'm a sucker for happy endings. 
> 
> Next update isn't written yet and the last week of PEIDA will likely be kicking my butt even more than this penultimate week is, but if all goes according to plan expect another chapter on Wednesday, maybe a bit later than 8 PM CEST.


	4. A Terrifying Stalemate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It was one thing to have to deal with either Chara or Gaster but to have to deal with them at the same time is a literal nightmare. She isn't sure how she is supposed to combat or argue with such overpowered beings, let alone when Gaster seems to know every potential move they could imagine making.

“no. you go. you will go right now.”

You had never heard Sans sound to angry and terrified at the same time. Your heart flipped in your chest and you tried to pull him back, away from Gaster but he still stood rooted to the floor by magic. You had never seen anyone who could get the upper hand on Sans’ magically either and it was horrifying to be able to witness it now.

You could hear some of the children crying in the corner still shielded by Hannah. Frisk came out from the pile, leaving a trembling Toriel behind. Frisk had never been one to shy away from confrontation. They shied away from conflict but they had only advanced because they had been willing to engage in discussion and get things worked out.

Frisk came to stand in front of you and Sans almost like they wanted to protect you. Gaster watched in interest while Chara scoffed and crossed Nova’s arms and rolled her eyes. Frisk started signing, and you couldn’t see the words standing directly behind them but it turned out that you didn’t need to worry about that.

Gaster seemed to be able to understand perfectly.

“Oh, little fallen human, you like to think that you’re special because you broke the barrier, don’t you? But remember I’ve seen it all too. I’ve seen you play with all the timelines, again and again. You could have gotten them all out immediately but you had to stay and _play_. ”

Frisk’s body lifted up from the floor and you tried to reach out to grab them but before you could grab ahold, Frisk was tossed directly into the wall. They crumbled like a ragdoll and you wouldn’t be surprised to find that they had broken bones from that toss. Toriel reacted now, rushing to Frisk’s side, hands already glowing with what limited magic she could redirect. Even as she worked, she looked over her shoulder at Gaster.

“You stop this at once. You are not welcome here. Gaster. You will leave our home at once,” Toriel demanded angrily, even through her tears.

Chara clicked their tongue. “You’re old news, mom.”

“My companion is right, you hold no authority over me anymore, Toriel.”

“I was your Queen,” Toriel said angrily.

She had only brought her cane to school today, which usually meant that she had been having a good pain day and not been in need of her wheelchair. Right now, the cane lay abandoned somewhere on the floor, and yet she pulled her up to her towering height and glared at Gaster and Chara with all the regal strength she possessed.

“I was the one who appointed you Royal Scientist in your day, W. D. Gaster. I will not have this disrespect.”

Gaster raised an eyebrow and there was a smirk on his melting face now.

“Of course, let me behave like a loyal subject should then,” Gaster said and then you felt the pulse of magic. It felt like it went right through your stomach and you crumbled to your knees. You held onto Sans who was still standing, but frozen and without access to his magic. You looked over your shoulder to see that both Toriel and Frisk lay in next to each other, knocked out. You weren’t even sure that they were alive and you wanted nothing more than to go check but you couldn’t help in this situation. All you could do would be hold them and pray.

You stood your ground.

A beat later you realized that the crying had stopped too, and a look at the back corner of the room confirmed that every student as well as Toriel had always been knocked unconscious. For a moment you were thrown back to the attack on POCAM and how everything could so easily have gone wrong. How some of it had gone terribly wrong but even that wasn’t as bad as this.

“Well, isn’t that nicer? Quieter for a family reunion?” Gaster said, clasping his hands together.

“what do you want?” Sans asked.

Chara cackled, sitting on top of Toriel’s desk and swinging their legs. It looked wrong to see Nova’s body do that in such a grim situation, but Chara was no longer hiding their control of the teenager. Their presence made Nova almost look like someone else entirely.

“Not yet, Sans. I said family reunion, didn’t I?” Gaster asked.

“no,” Sans said and this time it was all desperation. “you will keep him out of-”

“Chara?” Gaster said, completely ignoring Sans.

“With pleasure,” Chara said and flicked their wrist. The coldness seeped into the moment again and suddenly Papyrus was in the middle of the room. He was decked out in his Royal Guard uniform and he arrived with his fists raised. Your stomach plummeted, and for the first time since you had rushed to Sans’ side, you moved away from him.

He would want you to try to help Papyrus more than himself.

“I DID IT! I GOT IN!” Papyrus said, almost gleefully. “I AM HERE TO SAVE THE… DAD?”

In Papyrus’ surprise, you had managed to sneak up to him and you pulled your arms around his midriff and tried to pull him back.

“DOE? WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS?” Papyrus asked, looking around. “WHY ARE ALL THE OTHER HUMANS AND TORIEL SLEEPING? WHAT IS THE MATTER WITH NOVA? WHY IS DA… GASTER HERE?”

“Papyrus,” you said urgently almost begging and you tried to get him further away from the two being in the front of the classroom. You weren’t sure distance would be any help but you had to do something.

“It is good to see you again, son,” Gaster said, and you could feel Papyrus’ confusion deepen as you still pulled on him.

He stopped short, and you found that you couldn’t pull him anymore. For a beat, you thought he was frozen like Sans but the Papyrus started walking forward, dragging you behind him. You forgot about Papyrus’ physical strength sometimes because he was such a gentle monster.

“pap, don’t,” Sans said and then Papyrus stopped dragging you forward. “if you can, go.”

“Now, Sans, that really isn’t a very nice way to greet your father,” Gaster said. “Papyrus, come here and give your old father a hug. I have missed you.”

Papyrus didn’t move. You held onto his arm bones with all your might but you knew he could just pull you forward if he wanted to do so. It was not you who was keeping him from coming to Gaster. It was Sans.

“This is the most boring family reunion ever. Why did you want to do this again, G?” Chara asked, looked disinterested and bored. “We should go spread some real chaos.”

“All in good time,” Gaster said. “But I thought my two sons would be excited to see me be back after I’ve been lost in the void for nearly two decades in their time.”

“we are not your sons,” Sans said. “we were your experiments.”

“SANS?” Papyrus said confused. 

“you only wanted us to do your dirty work. you never cared about us. we were a means to an end.”

The whole room chilled and Gaster’s white pupils disappeared. It was such a Sans’ move that it momentarily startled you.

“On the contrary, I cared about you. You were my prized possessions. You, Sans, in particular. I created you out of nothing and I taught you to harvest magic and jump through the very fabric of the world. You should be grateful.”

Sans didn’t say anything but you could see how he clenched his jaw.

“HOW ARE YOU BACK?” Papyrus asked. “I THOUGHT YOU COULDN’T COME BACK.”

“Ah, yes. Your brother did tell you that, didn’t he? But he was wrong, then and now. He could have gotten me out back then too, if he only had the guts to do it.”

“not my fault that i was born without those,” Sans quipped.

“Puns? In a time like this?” Chara asked, chuckling. “You haven’t changed at all Sans. Would it be too much to say that I missed you?”

“bite me.”

Chara smiled, all teeth.

“Don’t tempt me,” they threatened.

“You see, Papyrus, your dear brother left me to rot in the void, instead of coming to my rescue.”

“SANS WOULD NEVER DO THAT,” Papyrus said, sure in his words. “HE ALWAYS MAKES SURE TO LOOK AFTER EVERYONE.”

You watched Sans as Papyrus spoke and he was trembling. You weren’t sure if it was guilt or anger or fear but he didn’t look good. You knew he must be worried about disappointing Papyrus but unfortunately you could easily see Sans leaving Gaster in the void to rot. Sans had never told Papyrus about the pain and the torment that had come with his void training.

Papyrus still thought that the void jumping was just a fun magic ability Sans had gained. He didn’t know about the horrors and Sans had never wanted him to know but right now, the choice wasn’t in his hands anymore. 

Gaster had made his life a living hell and he had threatened to make Papyrus go through the same thing. If Gaster had landed himself in trouble and gotten stuck, then Sans would have been rid of him. You knew he would likely have taken that blessing and run with it.

“Will you tell him or should I, Sans?” Gaster asked.

“pap, it’s not as simple as that.”

“WHY ISN’T IT? WHY WILL YOU NEVER TELL ME THE TRUTH, SANS. I’M OLD ENOUGH. I CAN HANDLE IT.”

“Sans will always think of you as babybones, Papyrus.”

“shut up!” Sans said, almost glowing with fury. You caught the slight blue color in the bottom of his eye sockets which indicated that he was tearing up.

“WHY WILL NO ONE TELL ME WHAT IS GOING ON?” Papyrus asked and he was emotional too. “AND WHY WON’T YOU MOVE TO LOOK AT ME, SANS?”

Chara cackled again and now they jumped down from the desk.

“You are the dumb one indeed,” they said, looking at Papyrus.

“say that again and i’ll rip your throat out,” Sans threatened Chara.

“Yeah, and how will you do that with no mobility and no magic? Are you going to glare me to death? You don’t scare me, Sans. You’re small time. I remember. You beat me so many times. Killed me and Frisk to avenge your stupid brother, but you gave up. You were not determined enough.”

“SANS, WHY CAN’T YOU MOVE? WHO IS DOING THAT? RELEASE MY BROTHER AT ONCE!” Papyrus demanded and drew his sword.

Chara smiled and waved their hand and the sword was yanked out of Papyrus hand and disappeared.

“WAH! WHERE DID IT GO?” Papryus said.

You just watched in silence, feeling that you were still lucky to be conscious in this magic filled room. It was giving you a headache and a half and you were trying desperately to think of a way out of this. You couldn’t think of one where you all made it out okay.

Gaster and Chara had all the cards. They had blocked the rest of the Royal Guard from coming in somehow. Frisk and Toriel were unconscious as well. Sans was immobilized and rendered harmless. Papyrus did not stand a chance against them alone.

You were not much help in a battle like this. You only had one real weapon. Your words. You needed to be careful and concise with them but you were running out of time. It was only a matter of minutes before this would escalate too far.

You supposed it all came down to one thing.

“What do you want?” you asked, looking from Chara to Gaster.

“Finally, someone asking the smart questions,” Chara remarked with an eyebrow raise. “I’d like a cappuccino please.”

“I was wondering when you would start to speak. That is what you do, is it not? Do you think your encouraging and persuasive words can get you out of this pickle as well? I would like to see you try. I have seen hundreds of branches of timelines moving forward from this moment. I know every word you could possibly say.”

That at least confirmed something about how Gaster seemed to know about you all and what you were up to. He had been able to see this and other timelines from the void. He must have. What a terrifying ability. He had more than just a slight advantage, this was a massive one. He would know just exactly how to prod and nudge all of you until you acted so that you would be led into the branch of the timeline that _he_ wanted. You truly didn’t have a chance.

But that didn’t mean that you shouldn’t keep trying.

“Then let us go,” you said.

You were pleased that your words seemed to surprise Gaster. Maybe, he didn’t truly know everything you might possibly say. It was a lot of timelines after all. They must be endless. Tou weren’t sure one could go through them, even if they had all the time in the world.

“You sure are something, I can see why you managed to steal Sans’ soul,” Gaster said.

Something roared in you and you wanted to defend yourself. Defend Sans. You had not stolen his soul but it was clear that Gaster was saying it only to get under his skin. You didn’t want to give him that satisfaction, even if you knew he probably also knew outcomes where you held your tongue.

“Why come now?” you asked, looking directly at Chara. “It is because of Nova, isn’t it? Chara finally found someone powerful enough to latch onto and get you both out of the void.”

“Maybe she’s the smart one,” Chara commented.

“DOE, WHAT SHOULD WE DO?” Papyrus asked confused. “SANS?”

“let them go,” Sans said.

“Ah, yes, I love this bit. This is one of my favorite bits. Sans would do this most of the time,” Gaster said, almost with glee. You wanted to kick him in the shin.

“i don’t care,” Sans said and raised his eyes towards Gaster. “i know what you want. you want what you have always wanted. power and recognition. control of others. the two of you are made of the same stuff.”

“You know, I’ll take that as a compliment,” Chara said, winking at Sans.

“leave pap and doe be. leave new new home be. go wage your war with the rest of the world. humanity at large. start another war to kill us all.”

“Sans…” you said, worried.

“SANS! THE OLD WAR JUST ENDED! SURELY, THEY WILL NOT WANT TO START ANOTHER.”

“Nah, bonehead, he’s pretty spot on. I’m going to go on a killing spree that Asriel was too much of a coward to start and Gaster here is going to crown himself the King of monsters.”

“WHAT?!”

“What?”

“what.”

“See? That’s fun to hear in real life,” Gaster said. “And yes, my companion is right once again.”

“Okay, that’s the second time you’ve called me that. Call me it again and I’m out of here, pal. It’s gross,” Chara said, and did a twirl for no particular reason.

You were not sure how unstable one might become if they were lost in the void for a long time but looking at both Chara and Gaster you definitely didn’t have a good feeling. You were glad you had never actually gotten lost in it but your heart ached for young Sans again.

“You know we can’t let you do that,” you said.

“OF COURSE, WE CANNOT! BUT GASTER AREN’T YOU JUST HAPPY TO BE HOME?”

”I have not had a home for centuries and centuries, Papyrus. The void held me hostage for longer than you can ever imagine. Two decades in your timeline? Two millennia in the void.”

“why come back then?” Sans sneered. “you’ll be mortal here. your time would be finite again. you will die.”

“Oh, Sans, you are quite adorable when you are trying to scare me but growing old doesn’t scare me. It doesn’t scare you either. I know. I’ve seen you cry and I’ve seen your nights riddled with nightmares. You have seen more than your real age too. You have lived much longer. Too much time isn’t always a blessing.”

“oh, you miss understand me. i did not mean growing old. i meant i will kill you,” Sans said, and you felt a chill go through your bones.

“Ah, yes. Murderous Sans indeed. But luckily, I have a solution for that too. Chara, if you will?”

The air in the room changed again and suddenly Papyrus was slammed against the wall, frozen even as he immediately started to struggle. Sans finally moved from his spot too but only to be dragged forward until he came to a stop right in front of Gaster. Chara didn’t seem able to get you with their magic, but they grabbed hold of you, snarling and holding on in a bruising grip.

“Everything will go a little easier with you out of the equation when you are like this. You will continue to be a thorn in my side otherwise. And you are oh, so easy to kill with your 1 HP, Sans. It is really a miracle that you lived this long. It is a shame to lose someone as talented as you but sacrifices must be made,” Gaster said and reached out to close his hands around Sans’ spine.

You didn’t have the foresight or the ability to see different timelines branching out from this moment but you could still feel the grief as if it was about to overcome you. You would not stand for this. You forgot everything about trying to be predictable or not and you just reacted. Chara was trying to hold you but you were angry and you were stronger than Nova’s body. You used your fighting skills from all the training with Undyne and with a jab back with your elbow, you got Chara to stumble. You followed it up with kicks and even bit the hand that came up to your face to try to hold you. You’d apologize to Nova later if you got the chance. 

Out of Chara’s hands, you threw yourself forward almost barreling into Gaster. He was not as substantial as you had expected. He felt almost half-corporeal, but unfortunately you didn’t manage to knock his hand away from Sans’ spine. Gaster’s hand was reaching through his ribcage and his hand had to be so close to Sans’ soul as well, maybe even touching it.

“no,” Sans coughed out. “no, doe. don’t.”

“You cannot do this,” you said, begged. “You cannot kill him.”

“Oh, I’m more than capable of killing. So is your Sans here by the way. In this timeline and in so many others.”

“I know, but never like this.”

Gaster laughed cynically. “He had been the coldblooded killer too, just because he isn’t it in this timeline.”

“And so what? I refuse to hold someone responsible for something they just have the capabilities to do! I have refused to hold Frisk responsible for all the things they did because it was not this timeline and I have seen the pain in their eyes when they remembered. I have seen the hurt in Sans talking about the other timelines too. It is a painful memory but they can’t change the past or the alternate timelines. I would be a killer in some of them too. All of us could be. I only care about the here and now and Sans does not deserve to die. If you weren’t a coward, you wouldn’t be so scared that you can’t get what you want with him still alive. Are you so scared someone you _created_ could best you that you feel the need to cheat?”

“Gaster, she’s playing you,” Chara said. “You know she is. You've seen this speech coming.”

Gaster was looking at you. Your chest was heaving with anxiety and nerves and it was terrifying to stand in front of Gaster and look up to him like this. It was an entirely uneven playing field. You never stood a chance when he had heard all of your words before.

But then something occurred to you. Souls. Your power had always been in your soul. Your so very human soul, with kindness and patience frozen together by lines of determination. It was not magic but it was strong.

“Sans, initiate a battle,” you said, not taking your eyes off Gaster as you said it.

“doe, he is more void creature than me now, we don’t know what will happen. he does.”

Except he didn’t look like it, something in Gaster’s expression shifted.

“Now, Sans!” you screamed and for a moment you thought he would continue to fight you but he must have more trust in you than you thought. You felt your soul shift and move forward and soon the whole room was bathed in hues of cyan and green. But only for a moment because then everything around you became dark. Gaster seemed to stumble back, unable to hold onto Sans now but he was still here. In the darkened room.

You had learned about monster battles in your time in New New Home, even if no one like initiating them. It created a bit of a barrier around you, blocking you off from everyone else, so that you could fight just using your soul. But despite Sans being the one who had initiated the battle, he was by your side and Gaster was the one standing opposite you.

“This was unexpected. I applaud you. And what a pleasure to see the famous soul in person. Quite a find there, dear Sans.”

“don’t you dare look at her,” Sans said. He was glaring but his arms were still at this side. He still mustn’t have been able to use his other powers. You wondered how he had even been able to call your soul out without control of his magic. You hadn’t even considered that. You had just asked. Even initiating a battle normally required a little bit of magic.

“Oh, but I am looking. I was ready to write you off, human. But I see I was foolish to underestimate you, or rather the influence you have on others. You are perhaps the more dangerous one, if you could blindside me like this. But I have a solution for that too.”

“doe,” Sans said, in warning but then he was suddenly pushed back, out of the darkened barrier. You tried to reach behind you to go after him or grab him but you couldn’t make it out of it. You felt stuck.

Maybe this had been a dangerous idea.

“Gaster, you don’t have to do this,” you said.

“Oh, but I do. I picked this timeline for a very specific reason, but I would find no redemption in any of them. I cannot be redeemed to my sons. But in this one I can thrive and take over. I just need to keep you and your pesky human strength at bay. With you at my command, Sans will not dare oppose me. It’s the better plan, so thank you.”

“If you think I’m going to do anything for you, then you are crazy.”

“Oh, but dear… You don’t get a choice here. I control the choices. Chara!” Gaster shouted. “Take us to the void.”

“Wh-” the protest died on your tongue and you only just about had time to clasp your hands around your soul to prevent from being pulled through in two pieces. You pressed your soul to your chest, and it burned in your hands as everything shifted around you. You felt like you had been tossed into a dryer on the highest setting. You were thrown and tossed around, again and again, until you landed on something with a thud.

It felt polished and cold and when you looked up you could only see darkness around you and Gaster peering down at you with a sinister smile.

“Welcome to the void,” he said.

You shivered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the slightly shorter chapter but I'm coming up on the end of PEDIA and it has been a bit of a struggle this final week. It's still 4k. Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter and us finally getting to hear a bit more about Chara and Gaster. Bless Doe, Sans and Papyrus in this, I just want to reach out and give them a hug. 
> 
> This fic is going on a brief hiatus for me to pre-write chapters and recover from having been on such a strict posting schedule for a whole month. I'm not sure when the next update will be but I have the whole fic mapped out, so I'm returning with updates as soon as I can.


End file.
